


Fires and Ice

by sssssssim



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-11
Updated: 2015-02-11
Packaged: 2018-03-11 21:44:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 19
Words: 84,697
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3333971
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sssssssim/pseuds/sssssssim
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Collection of Flash drabbles. Killervibe and Snowbarry (probably. I will update the tags as I go along.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. nuclear

**Author's Note:**

> Chapter 1: Set after 1x13 - _The Nuclear Man_. Caitlin doesn't want to be alone that night.

Barry runs them back to Star Labs. Caitlin doesn’t say anything; she just throws her jacket on a chair and heads to the bathroom.

She cries for a long time, and thankfully, nobody disturbs her. Caitlin doesn’t know how long it takes, but when she comes out of the bathroom, the labs are silent.

Cisco’s still there, anxiously wringing his fingers.

‘Doctor Wells thought you wanted to be alone, and Barry didn’t want to leave, but we made him.’

‘Thank you’, Caitlin manages to rasp out.

Cisco doesn’t say anything more, but he does move to take her jacket, wordlessly helping her into it.

‘I don’t want to be alone’, Caitlin finds herself whispering, and Cisco doesn’t even hesitate.

He puts a hand around her shoulder, pressing their heads together.

‘Sleepover it is’, Cisco says, kindly. ‘I have a freezer full of icecream and a fridge full of vodka.’

‘No vodka’, Caitlin is quick to shake her head. ‘Head hurts too much in the morning.’

Cisco just smiles and guides her towards the exist.

◦/◦

The first thing Cisco does after stepping into his apartment is to apologize for the mess. He then runs around, gathering clothes and shoving them in a hamper.

Caitlin doesn’t care. She just toes off her shoes and looks around the place, because she’s never been to Cisco’s apartment.

It’s a large studio, with a bright yellow couch in the middle, and a massive entertainment center. On the other side of the apartment, there’s a huge bed, with dark green sheets. There are two bookshelves, filled to the brim, several comic book posters hanging around, and the whole place had pieces of tech lying around. There's a small kitchen in a corner, and the sink is filled to the brim with dirty dishes.

‘I like your place’, Caitlin tells Cisco, smiling. ‘It’s very you.’

He shrugs, with his back towards her, as he’s rummaging through a dresser.

Cisco’s smiling when he comes back to her side, handing her a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt, that’s very soft from wearing.

‘Bathroom’s that way’, he points to the far side of the apartment, where there’s a dark purple door near the bed. ‘There’s lotion and stuff above the sink’, he blushes and doesn’t look Caitlin in the eye. ‘I’ll get the ice cream while you change.’

The bathroom is also very typical Cisco, Caitlin is pleased to find out. The tiles are brightly colored and mismatched, there’s a _404: page not found_ shower curtain, and there are three different motherboards on the washing machine. True to his word, there are several lotions in the cupboard above the sink, that Caitlin uses to take off her makeup. She braids her hair, using one of the several hair ties lying around, and she completely ignores the box of condoms and bottles of lube.

When Caitlin comes out of the bathroom, awkward, wearing Cisco’s clothes, he’s also changed in a pair of plaid pajama bottoms and a Metallica t-shirt that looks as old as her. He’s sitting on the couch, with his legs crossed and three different remotes in his hand. In front of him, on the coffee table, there are different tubs of ice-cream and a six pack of beer.

Caitlin hesitates, but she does sit down on the couch next to Cisco, bringing her knees up to her chest and trying her best to keep from crying.

‘What are we watching?’, she asks, and Cisco grins at her.

‘Star Wars’, he says without any room for discussion. But he also wraps her in a soft comforter and hands her a tub of ice cream and a spoon, so Caitlin doesn’t say anything. She just makes herself comfortable and settles down to watch Cisco’s favorite movie.

◦/◦

Caitlin’s barely awake when the movie ends, and Cisco snickers when he picks her up. Next thing she knows, she’s in the middle of Cisco’s bed, and he’s watching her, amused.

‘I’m not giving you my bed’, he tells her, faking sternness. ‘The couch is hell to sleep on. But’, he wiggles his eyebrows. ‘I’m not opposed to sharing.’

‘Okay’, Caitlin smiles, scooting over to the left side of the bed. Cisco grins as he gets under the covers.

After he’s settled, Caitlin sighs and moves closer to him, until she can rest her head on his shoulder. Cisco moves around, moves them around, until he has a hand around her shoulders and her head is resting on his chest.

Caitlin starts crying again, but Cisco doesn’t say anything. He just holds her.

‘I keep telling people that I’m moving on’, Caitlin whispers in the darkness. ‘But I’m not ready to do that. I love him. I’ll always love him.’

‘Nobody expects you to stop loving him’, Cisco says kindly, rubbing circles onto her back. ‘But you deserve to be happy.’

‘He’s gone now’, she whispers. ‘He’s really gone now.’

‘He’s been gone for a year, Caitlin. But this time you got to see it.’

They don’t say anything for a long time, but she doesn’t fall asleep. Cisco doesn’t either, and he doesn’t stop rubbing circles into her back.

◦/◦

It’s comforting, more comforting that anything has ever been in the past year. Cisco is here, for her. Has always been, Caitlin realizes. And she doesn’t know where she would have been now if it wasn't for him.

Cisco came to Ronnie’s funeral, and he kissed her cheek, without saying anything, which she was grateful for. The next week, they met at the hospital, visiting Doctor Wells, and he asked her out for lunch. ‘You look like you could use a break’, he said, kindly. ‘And I could use some socializing’, he shrugged, ‘you’re the first familiar face I’ve seen in weeks.’ After that, Cisco checked up on her, every other day. A text, a short phone call, an IM. And when Doctor Wells called her, offering her a new job, Cisco was the first person she called, and they decided to go back to Star Labs together.

◦/◦

‘I don’t know what I would have done without you’, Caitlin finds herself saying.

‘I’m always here’, Cisco doesn’t miss a beat in answering. ‘I might not get to you as fast as other people we know’, he snickers slightly, ‘but I’ll get there.’

‘I owe you-‘

‘Absolutely nothing’, Cisco interrupts her, moving again.

He arranges them, easily, until he’s on his side, facing her, one arm under her head and the other over her waist. He also throws a leg over hers, and it should be weird, Caitlin should find it weird, to be completely enveloped by Cisco like this.

But it’s not weird. She pushes her nose into the crook of neck, and fists her hands into his t-shirt.

‘Sleep now, Caitlin’, he whispers, pressing a kiss to the crown of her head.

‘I love you’, she says, and it feels right. Not a lie, not over the top, just the unaltered truth.

‘I know’, Cisco says after a few beats, and there’s something weird, there’s something off about how he says it, but Caitlin is too tired to figure it out.

She falls asleep counting Cisco’s breaths.

◦/◦

Miraculously, they both sleep in. They’re woken up by Cisco’s phone ringing, Wells telling him to come to work, because he found something.

Caitlin’s phone is shut, and her head hurts, she doesn’t have clothes and-

‘You go shower’, Cisco tells her. ‘Quickly. I’ll get you some clothes, start on breakfast. You can eat while I shower.’

Once again, there isn’t room for discussion, so Caitlin does as she’s told. When she steps out of the shower, there are clothes waiting for her on the washing machine. A pair of men’s skinny jeans, dark purple, that are a bit large on her, but there’s manageable, with a belt. A black t-shirt, with some superhero sign on it, Caitlin doesn’t even know who’s. It’s large on her, bulky, but comfortable. She blushes furiously when she puts on a pair of Cisco’s boxer-briefs, but decides not to say anything about it.

As Cisco showers, she doesn’t eat, she usually doesn’t have breakfast. Caitlin uses the time to brew some coffee and to apply a minimum amount of makeup, just enough to hide her dark circles and make her look awake.

She rummages through Cisco’s dresser and pulls out a mustard colored cardigan, doesn’t hesitate in buttoning it on. It’s large, too large on her, but it smells like him, she smells like him, and surprisingly so, it makes her feel comfortable. So she’s smiling as Cisco comes out of the bathroom, fully clothed.

He looks weirdly at Caitlin, for a beat, but doesn’t comment on anything. The ride to the lab is silent, and when they get there, they quickly get to work.

Thankfully, it’s not something Ronnie related.

◦/◦

Doctor Wells keeps shooting her looks, sometimes confused and sometimes worried, but she very pointedly ignores them.

Barry does ask her if she’s okay, and Caitlin manages to smile, telling him that she’s better than she would have thought. It doesn’t feel like she’s lying.

It’s close to lunch, when Barry just sort of stops in front of her, and stares.

‘Is that Cisco’s t-shirt?’, he asks, slowly, staring at the thing.  

Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Cisco freez, but Caitlin ignores him. She snickers, shaking her head.

‘Subtlety is not your forte, is it, Mr. Allen?’

Barry frowns.

‘I didn’t want to be alone last night’, she admits in a low voice. ‘Cisco took care of me.’

That makes Barry smile, a look she can’t decipher in his eyes.

‘He does that a lot, doesn’t he?’

Caitlin doesn’t know what to say to that, so she doesn’t say anything.

◦/◦

They’re the only ones left in the lab again, that night.

‘I’ll wash your clothes and give them back’, she tells him, playing with the hem of the t-shirt.

‘No rush’, he smiles. ‘They look surprisingly good on you.’

Caitlin laughs, blushing, and hugs Cisco, tightly. He doesn’t hesitate in hugging her back, and she smiles.

‘Thank you’, she whispers, and Cisco squeezes her hips once before letting go and pushing away.

‘Don’t thank me, Caitlin’, he says strongly, looking her dead in the eyes. ‘I know you’d do the same.’

Oh, this man, Caitlin thinks. Who would go to the end of the world for the people he cares for, who held her close last night, who doesn’t expect thank you’s. Cisco, the goofy sidekick with a big brain, who would take a bullet for her, who stuck around when she was too broken to even smile. He would be so good for her, she knows this. Explosive, and not in the way Ronnie was. But warm, and safe, and so very much there.

Caitlin takes a deep breath, brings her hand up to put a stray lock of hair behind his ear, and lets her fingers stay there. Before she can rethink it, Caitlin kisses him.

Just a press of the lips, just enough to feel him close, to breathe him in, to make him close his eyes, just enough to make her heart beat faster.

When she pulls away, he’s looking at her in shock, with his eyes wide and it doesn’t seem like he’s breathing.

‘I’m not ready to let go yet’, Caitlin says slowly. ‘But I wanted to do that.’

Cisco takes a few seconds, to look into her eyes, but in the end he nods, smiling slightly. ‘Okay.’

‘Thank you’, she says again, because she needs to know that she is grateful. ‘Thank you for everything.’

‘Anytime’, Cisco says, and again, there’s something off in his tone, just like last night.

Now, though, now Caitlin figures out what it is. It’s longing, and it doesn’t surprise her, not really.

◦/◦

She washes his clothes that night, but in the morning, she can’t bring herself to give them back.

So Caitlin keeps the tshirt. And the underwear.

Cisco doesn’t say anything about it.


	2. She friendzoned you, Dante said.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Post 1x16, what happens when Dante sees Caitlin and Cisco again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO I've decided to change this into a drabble collection. The Flash things, various pairings, knowing me it will be Killervibe and Snowbarry.  
> I won't be updating as often as Pink on Green, though, Olicity is still my main thing :)). But every now and then, I will get ideas for Flash drabbles. So here ya go.

The second time she sees Dante, Caitlin is waiting for Cisco at their favorite pizza place. They’re supposed to have dinner, for once, just relax and have a night off. But she sees Dante hesitating, so she invites him to join them.

Cisco seemed surprised and weary when he arrives, and as they’re ordering, he grew more and more tense. As their food arrived, Cisco was a plank of hard muscle by her side, so Caitlin very boldly and pointedly grabbed his hand under the table, as she asked Dante to tell him embarrassing stories about their childhood.

≡

Cisco tempered down during dinner, as he tried to convince Dante to stop talking. Thankfully, he didn't, and over the next hour, Caitlin heard a lot about Cisco’s life while growing up.

It wasn’t great.

Dante made everything sound funny and exciting, but Caitlin knows what it’s like, to grow up as a nerd in the middle of the cool kids. She didn’t say anything, she laughed when she was supposed to, didn’t point when their parents’ reaction were hurtful towards Cisco, didn’t scream at Dante for being an asshole to his brother while growing up, even if that was all she wanted to do at that point.

Caitlin was protective of Cisco, she knew this. But the intensity with which she wanted to bash his brother’s head into the table surprised her. So she spent the entire dinner with Cisco’s hand in hers.

≡

‘So how long have you two been dating?’, Dante casually asked, and Caitlin feelt Cisco freeze next to her.

‘We’re not’, he said, slowly, taking his hand away from Caitlin’s hold.

‘It sure looks that way’, Dante frowned, and when it was clear Cisco won’t be saying anything more, Caitlin tried her best to explain.

‘We’re not dating, but we have been through a lot. I lost my fiancé in the particle accelerator explosion’, Dante’s jaw dropped at that, but Caitlin went on. ‘And Cisco was there for me, when I  could barely function as a human being. He took care of me, made sure I survived’, she turned to Cisco and grinned, ‘for which I will forever be thankful.’

Cisco shook his head, opened his mouth to say something, but Dante got there before him.

‘And now?’, he asked Caitlin. ‘That was then, what about now?’

Caitlin shared a look with Cisco, and it made her mad, that he seemed hesitant, that he lowered his head in seemingly shame. So when she looked back to Dante, he blinked, probably shocked by the strong look Caitlin was giving him.

‘Now’, she said slowly, ‘we work with the Flash. I’m his doctor, and Cisco’s his… tech guy. Flash would have been dead a couple of times now, if it wasn’t for Cisco’s equipment and brain.’

‘You don’t have to butter up Cisco in front of me’, Dante said next, ‘I know what he’s capable of.’

Cisco once again lowered his head at that, but Caitlin laughed, as sarcastically as she could.

‘I don’t think you do.’

Dante didn’t say anything, he just raised an eyebrow. Cisco said her name, slowly, but she ignored him.

‘It’s not just about the Flash, you know.’, Caitlin started by saying. ‘About being the sidekick. About being in his ear, constantly, figuring out fast solutions to his problems. Cisco… He doesn’t just make calculations, and tinker with wires all day. He doesn’t just … improve the Flash’s suit with every passing day, make sure the accelerator keeps all the bad guys in-‘

‘Caitlin’, Cisco said strongly, making her turn to look at him. She knew what he was thinking, that she was telling Dante too much, so Caitlin sighed and didn’t look away from Cisco when she talked.

‘I lost count, of the number of times you got yourself hurt, while caring for me and for him.’

‘Someone has to’, Cisco said, trying to fake amusement. ‘Someone smart. You’re both too busy stupidly caring for one another to remember you have to take care of yourself too.’

Caitlin couldn’t help it, she laughed.

‘So, friendzoned’, Dante’s voice startled them. ‘She’, he pointed a finger at Caitlin, ‘friendzoned you.’

Once again, Cisco opened his mouth to say something, but Caitlin didn’t let him.

Instead, she glared at Dante, with all the strength she had.

‘It’s so sad, that you have lived your life side by side Cisco, but you are too blind to see him for what he is. So you just… hurt him, and bully him, and push him away. And that’s so sad. So sad’, she laughed, ‘because you’re pushing away one of the best thing that could have ever happened in your life.’

Dante just stared at her for a few moments, but she didn’t back down, Caitlin glared right back.

He left, without saying anything more. Barely looking at his brother, Dante left the diner, leaving behind a very upset and angry Caitlin.

When she turned towards Cisco, he had tears in his eyes. That made her heart drop. She quickly grabbed a hold of his hand in both of hers.

‘I’m sorry’, she said, and Cisco shook his head.

‘You didn’t do anything wrong’, he was quick to say. ‘Never. You’re too good for me.’

Caitlin puffed, letting go of his hands in order to wrap her arms around his neck. She kissed his cheek, lingering when she felt him gasp.

‘Don’t even think that again, Cisco’, she whispered into his hair. ‘You deserve my love as much as I deserve yours.’

≡

The next time Dante sees them, Caitlin doesn’t notice him, on the other side of the street. She doesn’t notice anything, except from the blood on her hands.

There was a new metahuman wrecking havoc into Starling City, a metahuman that had the ability to shoot bullets from his hands.

And he cornered them, Caitlin, Cisco and the Flash, in front of the Police Station.

The cops tried fighting him, but they were rendered useless, hiding behind shields and cars. Barry tried stopping him, but he was at her feet, withering in pain, having been shot in the leg. Repeatedly.

When the metahuman aimed his arms at her, Cisco was in front of her, in a flash. Caitlin heard the bullet spiking through the air. And then she heard Cisco gasp. She heard him fall to the ground, and when she looked down, she saw the blood seeping through his clothes.

Then, she heard herself scream. Loud. So loud, louder than ever before.

And then, there was silence. Like the whole world stopped speaking, stopped moving.

Time stopped, for her.

The next thing Caitlin was aware of, were her hands covered in Cisco’s blood, from where she kept pressure on the wound.

Barry’s hands were on her shoulders, and he was trying to pull her away from Cisco, but she didn't let him.

‘She’s a doctor’, Barry said in his Flash voice, and when Caitlin looked up, she saw an ambulance and two paramedics next to Cisco.

One of them grabbed her wrist.

‘Ma’am, you’re shaking’, he said. ‘You can’t help him with shaking hands, let us do that.’

And then Barry was pulling her away, and she was crying onto his suit, Cisco’s suit, and she cried harder.

Barry wordlessly put her on the ambulance, telling her he’ll meet her as the hospital as fast as he could.

Caitlin lost time again, riding in the ambulance, holding onto Cisco’s hand and counting his heart beats.

≡

When Barry got to the hospital, he was wearing civilian clothes and a concerned look on his face. But he didn’t say anything, just sat down next to her on the crappy chairs, and they waited.

Dante and his parents came before Cisco was out of surgery.

Caitlin swore under her breath, and Barry was quick to catch on.

‘Any news?’, Dante asked Caitlin, and she shook her head, tears threatening to fall again.

‘He’s in surgery’, Barry helpfully supplied. ‘The doctor said he’ll update us as soon as he can.’

‘How could this happen?’, his mother asked, shakily. ‘How could he be so stupid? He should have ran away, when he saw what was happening, how could he be so stupid?’

Caitlin didn't look at her. She looked at Barry.

His lips were thinned out, there was anger in his eyes, and regret, so much regret.

‘How can _you_ be so stupid?’, Caitlin found herself saying, turning around to look at Cisco’s family.

‘This is what Cisco does! He does everything he can, to protect the people he loves. Tonight he took a bullet for me, and you’re… you’re so stupid, you don’t realize how important that is.’

She must have been yelling, because Barry puts a hand on her shoulder.

When Caitlin turned around to look at him, she started crying. ‘I can’t do this. Don’t make me do this, I can’t burry another one, I can’t-‘

Barry wordlessly gathered her in his arms, and he all but dragged her away to another corner of the hallway.

Absently, she heard Cisco’s mother ask Dante who she was, and she heard him say that she was important. But that only made her cry harder.

≡

The nurses won’t let her into Cisco’s room, because she’s not family.

Caitlin didn't take it, she all but shoved a nurse into a wall and barged into the room, where the doctor was at Cisco’s bedside, and his family was in a corner.

She gasped when she saw Cisco, pale and looking small, so small in the hospital bed. But his heartbeat was steady, she heared the beeping of the monitors. So she pushed through her tears.

‘I’m his personal physician’, she told the doctor.

‘Cisco doesn’t have a personal physician.’, his mother said, and Caitlin turned to glare at the woman.

‘How would you know?’

There’ was a cold silence, that settled over the room, and it was Barry that broke it, asking the doctor about Cisco’s state.

The doctor answered him, saying a lot of words, and during that time, Caitlin slowly made her way to Cisco’s bedside. She sat down in the chair there, and wrapped her fingers around his wrist, pushing on his pulse point, making sure he was alive and there.

‘I don’t understand what that means’, Dante said, and Caitlin was quick to answer.

‘The bullet didn’t hit anything vital. There’s going to be a few weeks of recovery, but he’ll be able to go home for most of it. He’s going to have a scar.’

Barry snorted. ‘He’ll love that.’

Caitlin couldn’t help but smile.

≡

Cisco’s parents were the first ones to leave. Barry also left soon after, because he had work to do. But he didn’t leave before getting her coffee and a sandwich.

She was left with only Dante.

Caitlin didn’t get up from the chair. And she didn’t let go of Cisco’s hand. For hours, she just stood there, counting his heartbeats, taking comfort in the rise and fall of his chest.

‘You should go home’, Dante said at one point. ‘Take a shower and change your clothes.’

‘No’, was all she answered, and that was the end of it.

But a couple of hours later, Barry came by again. He brought her comfy clothes and her shampoo, and Caitlin quickly took a shower in one of the nurses’ break rooms, after Barry batted his eyelashes at one of them.

Barry also brought her the only plushy she had in her apartment. She didn’t know how he found it, how he even knew about it. But it was a stuffed polar bear, that was wearing a red jumper with little laptops on it. She got it from Cisco, the first Valentines’ after Ronnie died, and since then, she safely kept it in a box in her closet, and in her head, she referred to it as the Cisco-Bear.

Caitlin didn’t hesitate; she put the stuffed animal next to Cisco, between his body and his arm, and took a few moments to wrap the blanket around the bear as well.

Both Dante and Barry were looking at her oddly, but she ignored them.

≡

When Cisco woke up, he woke up gasping her name.

But Caitlin was there, grabbing his cheeks with her hands and making him look at her.

He calmed down, quickly, but she couldn’t move away.

‘Don’t do that again’, she told him as sternly as she could, even though she was crying. ‘Don’t ever again assume, that I’d be happy in a world without you in it.’

‘I had to keep you safe’, he whispered, looking up at her with awe in his eyes. She wanted to blame it on the drugs he was on, but she knew better than that.

So Caitlin leaned forward, kissed his forehead for a long while. But then, she made sure to have Cisco notice that Dante was in the room too.

And she started explaining what happened, with the detached tone Cisco expected from her. But half way through, his eyes fell on the stuffed bear. He just stared at it, for a while, but then he smiled, so bright and caring, it warmed Caitlin’s heart instantly.

When Cisco fell asleep again, soon after because there were still a lot of drugs in his system and he needed the rest, he fell asleep with Cisco-Bear cuddled close to his chest.

Caitlin didn’t even care about how Dante didn’t look away from her for a full hour.

≡

Caitlin was there for all of Cisco’s recovery.

After the doctor let him go home, Caitlin was there, four times a day. In the morning to help him with breakfast, at lunch and dinner, and once again, before Cisco went to bed, to check on his wound and change his bandages.

Dante was there too, sometimes. He never said anything, didn’t even bat an eye the first time she let herself in.

He only ever spoke directly to her once, asking her what the name of the bear was. Because the stuffed bear was now sitting on Cisco’s bedside table.

Caitlin answered, even though she blushed furiously. But Cisco started laughing, somewhat hysterically, and Dante soon followed, so it was okay.

≡

Cisco came back to Star Labs gradually. Just a few hours a day at first, and Caitlin yelled a lot at him, to go home.

And she went with him to every doctor’s appointment, including the last one, where Cisco got a clear bill of health.

The next day, Cisco came to the lab bright and early, but Caitlin was already there. So she saw him put the Cisco-Bear on his work station, right next to his monitors.

Caitlin didn’t say anything, but she smiled, and blushed.

≡

‘You’re going out for dinner tomorrow.’, Cisco told her out of nowhere, with a strong and determined look on his face. ‘With me. And you’re wearing a dress, and you’re getting pretty, well, prettier than you already are’, he stammered.

‘Why?’, Caitlin laughed.

‘Because I want to thank you for everything you did for me in the past weeks’.

She shook her head. ‘You saved my life, Cisco. We’re not even yet.’

‘Okay’, he grinned. ‘Then have dinner with me and we’ll be even.’

She couldn’t say no. Nor did she want to.

≡

Caitlin did put on a dress. It was dark blue and lacy, and she did her hair in a complicated updo and wore heels higher than normal.

Cisco picked her up, in a gray button up and a black suit jacket, and they just looked at each other for a few seconds.

He looked good. So much so, that it was hard for Caitlin to breathe properly.

Cisco snapped out of it first, even though there was a blush coloring his cheeks.

‘You look amazing, Caitlin. Thank you. Now let’s go, before we miss our reservations.’

He grabbed her hand and didn’t let go until they were seated at a very fancy French restaurant.

≡

The last time Caitlin had fun, it was the karaoke fiasco with Barry.

But now, sitting across from Cisco as he babbled about a new security system for Star Labs he was working on, as he was absently picking on his seafood pasta, Caitlin felt…

Something good. Something nice. And amazing.

Different than what she felt when she was getting drunk with Barry.

Different than what she felt on her first date with Ronnie.

Different, because Cisco was different than them. He has always been different, to her.

She used to call him her best friend, when she was with Ronnie.

After he died, Cisco was her lifeline.

When Barry came into their lives, Cisco was her partner.

Now, Caitlin didn’t know what he was anymore. To her. But she had to give Dante credit.

Because Cisco was important to her.

As she was to him.

≡

‘You’re not even listening to me, are you?’, Cisco’s slightly annoyed voice interrupted her epiphany.

She smiled at him, and shook her head slightly.

‘Sorry, I got distracted by your hair.’

There was a pause, then he frowned. ‘What?’

Caitlin giggled. ‘I haven’t seen you with your hair tied in a while. You stopped wearing it up after your first week of work.’

Cisco was still frowning, but he was amused. ‘That was weird. Why… Is that important?’

‘Because you are.’, Caitlin didn’t hesitate in answering, and she was delighted to see Cisco blushing.

To distract herself, she called the waiter and ordered chocolate cake for desert.

≡

When they stepped out of the restaurant, it was Caitlin that grabbed his hand and intertwined their fingers. Cisco just smiled at her and continued the conversation they were having.

≡

‘Thank you, Caitlin, really’, Cisco said seriously as he walked her to her apartment door. ‘For today and for everything. I…’

He was struggling with his words, and Caitlin just… she laughed.

Delighted, and feeling lighter than she ever felt in the past year.

Cisco frowned at her, confused, but she couldn’t tell him. She couldn’t find her words, so Caitlin did the next best thing.

She kissed him.

Cisco froze, but she didn’t back down. She slowly got her body closer to his, as close as she could get without touching him. And she lifted a hand, placing it on his neck, gently scratching the skin.

And that made Cisco move. Hesitantly at first, he wrapped his hands around her waist. When she smiled against his lips, he drew her closer, until their bodies were touching and he grew bolder, as did she.

Caitlin has no idea how long they kissed. In front of her apartment door, leaning against the door, breathing into each other’s mouths and giggling. There was giggling.

And then, they heard a loud crash. Cisco instantly pushed her behind his body, shielding her from… Barry.

Who was hiding his face behind a Big Belly Burger takeout bag.

‘What are you doing, man?’, Cisco asked, still panting.

‘I wanted to check up on Caitlin.’, Barry rushed out, not lowering the bag. ‘She was acting weird today, which now makes total sense, oh god, I didn’t mean to interrupt.’

Caitlin was laughing, silently, pushing her face into Cisco’s back. He wasn’t doing much better.

‘You can lower the bag, dude’, Cisco finally said.

Barry did so, slowly.

‘Sorry’, he winced. ‘I really could have lived without seeing that.’

‘Well you better get used to it’, Caitlin said, making Cisco freeze.

He turned around towards her, slowly, looking at her with wide eyes. ‘Seriously?’, he asked somewhat breathlessly.

‘We’ll talk later’, Caitlin smiled and gave him a quick kiss, ignoring Barry spluttering in the background. ‘But now, how about a Walking Dead marathon?’

Cisco grinned.

Caitlin looked to Barry. ‘You can join us.’

‘I don’t know if I want to do that’, he said with a slightly disgusted look on his face.

‘We’ll behave’, she rolled her eyes and opened the door.

‘Speak for yourself’, Cisco muttered under his breath, but Caitlin ignored him.

For now.

≡

The next time Dante sees them, it’s at the Ramon annual Christmas party. And he doesn’t get to say much, because everybody is too busy congratulating Cisco on getting such a wonderful girlfriend.


	3. Howl to your moon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> there was a discussion on tumblr, and it ended with [mosylufanfic](http://mosylufanfic.tumblr.com) requesting a werewolf!cisco fic. killervibe ahead!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I promise I will write some snowbarry. .... eventually)

Wolverine was wrecking havoc in Central City. Really.

Well, almost.

There was a metahuman, with a mile-long police record, who could grow claws. They weren’t metal claws, like Wolverine’s, they were from a sort of organic of material. Caitlin got a sample, analyzing it, and she found a weird combination of chemicals and cells that can be found in any human body.

Cisco wondered if his were the same.

○

And here they were, in a dark back alley. Caitlin had her back plastered to the wall, she was crying softly, and under her breath, she kept saying ‘come on, Barry’.

Because Barry was coming. Cisco just didn’t know if he would be able to get away from the Police station soon enough.

So Cisco was shielding Caitlin. As well as he could.

Her hands were both scrunched up in the back of his jacket, but he was doing his best to ignore her, Cisco didn’t look away from the metahuman.

Who was sharpening his claws on a wall.

‘I’m going to kill you’, the meta said. ‘Slowly. And if you think the Flash will come to save you... Well, you’d have to wait for a while, considering I left him bleeding out on the other side of town.’

Caitlin gasped, and Cisco… well. He threw caution out the window.

‘May we say goodbye? Before you kill us?’, he asked, making his voice crack.

The meta nodded, amused, and Cisco turned around to face Caitlin.

‘What are you doing?’, she asked, desperately, and Cisco wrapped his hands around her, holding her tightly.

‘Everything is going to be okay, I promise’, he said into her ear. ‘I need you to stay away.’

‘What are you doing?’, she asked again, more desperately, pushing away from his hold, just a bit, so she could look him in the eyes.

Cisco struggled, to keep his voice straight, to keep his strength up. He wanted to explain, he wanted to tell her everything, to stop lying, but the metahuman was unkindly telling them to hurry up.

‘Please, Caitlin’, Cisco managed to say, ‘don’t be afraid of me.’

Caitlin didn’t understand, clearly. When Cisco let go of her and took a step back, she tried to follow.

But she stopped, when Cisco flashed his eyes.

They were bright gold.

○

Barry got there at the end of it all, when Cisco was slashing furiously at the metahuman’s chest.

He managed to pin the meta to the wall, Cisco’s claws pricking at his neck. He wouldn’t have done it, he wouldn’t have killed him, but Barry still screamed for him to stop.

So Cisco bashed his head to the wall, rendering him unconscious. Barry picked him up and flashed away, probably to the prison.

Cisco shifted back to human, and turned around to Caitlin.

‘Let’s go home’, he said. Caitlin didn’t meet his eye.

○

‘Can I see it?’, Caitlin asked, hesitantly. They were back in the cortex, after cleaning up, and Caitlin and Barry were standing a few feet away from Cisco.

It felt like miles, to him.

‘During the fight, you had fangs’, Caitlin said, slowly. ‘And more… hair. Can I see it?’

It wasn’t a good idea, Cisco knew it. But he couldn’t lie to them, not anymore.

So Cisco let the shift take place. He felt his eyes glow, and his fangs grow. He felt the bones in his face shifting and his claws growing.

He couldn’t open his eyes when it was done. He couldn’t bear to see his friends afraid of him.

‘Open your eyes’, Caitlin soft’s voice came through, and she was a lot closer than before. She was right in front of him, eyes ranking all over his face.

‘You’re not afraid’, Cisco observed.

Caitlin frowned. ‘You would never hurt me.’

Cisco breathed out, relief washing over him. He smiled, he couldn’t help it. It was weird, to smile around his fangs, and Caitlin must have noticed it, because she scrunched up her nose.

She also raised her hand, running her fingers over his face, without hesitation. She ignored the way Cisco gasped, and how his eyes flashed when her skin first touched his.

‘Where did your eyebrows go?’, Caitlin asked, and Cisco snorted. Which, because he was shifted, came out as a growl, but it was okay, because Caitlin laughed.

‘Did the particle accelerator do this to you?’, Barry asked, coming closer to them.

Cisco shook his head, letting his features shift back to human.

And then, he started talking.

○

Cisco got bit by an Alpha in college. It was a hit and run, basically, because he never saw the Alpha ever again. A few months later, he felt him die. Cisco doesn’t really understand, but he knows, for sure, that the Alpha that bit him died. But the power didn’t transfer to him, so someone else was an Alpha, but Cisco didn’t feel any connection to that person, for which he was grateful. He was okay with being an Omega without a pack.

It was hard at first, to learn control, but Cisco had help. There was a guy, who approached him the first time he almost shifted in class. Cisco was weary, as first, but the guy came from a pack from California. He wasn’t a werewolf, he smelt completely human, but he knew a lot.

So he taught Cisco.

About pack dynamics, about power, about anchors and control.

Cisco will forever be grateful for that. They still e-mailed, and every now and then, he gets a call or an text, asking him for a favor. To hack into some data base, to track a guy down. Cisco never asks, but he always delivers.

○

Caitlin insisted on doing a full body scan on Cisco, even though he assured her she wouldn’t find anything.

And she didn’t. Even if Cisco had super strength, hearing and smell, even if he healed quicker than a normal human being, there was nothing different in his cells.

It was easier, after that.

Because Barry was excited. He thought being a werewolf was so cool, and he kept pushing Cisco, to find out just what he’s capable of, but also to find out who's cooler, the Flash or a werewolf. But it was always fun, and soon enough, their playful fights ended up being training sessions.

Caitlin didn’t agree with this course of action, as she kept pointing out every time she had to set a bone or clean a wound, but she still kept asking for information.

Cisco was very grateful for his friends. Happy.

He kept this secret for years, hid his true nature from everyone. Now, he felt free. And it helped, everybody knowing that Cisco could take care of himself, knowing that he was a force.

By the Flash’s side, the werewolf could help.

○

In parallel with training with Barry, Cisco made sure to answer every question Caitlin came up with.

But she was a scientist, she couldn’t believe in words, she needed to see things for herself, analyze them under a microscope if possible.

Cisco never said no to her, no matter how ridiculous the requests or questions got.

○

‘Just how strong are you?’

Cisco shrugged, and lifted her up with one hand. Caitlin giggled, begging to be put down, and told him that doesn’t count as much.

So he took Caitlin to a part of the laboratories they never used anymore, and he punched through a wall.

○

‘How enhanced is your hearing?’

Cisco smirked. ‘What color are your underwear today?’

Caitlin’s jaw dropped, but she hesitantly said ‘black.’

Cisco grinned. ‘That is true, yes. Now, when you and Barry went out to karaoke, he said that you didn’t sing. Is that true?’

‘Of course we didn’t sing.’, Caitlin scoffed, making Cisco’s eyes grow wide and a gigantic grin stretch on his face.

‘That was a lie’.

‘No, it wasn’t’, Caitlin was quick to shake her head.

‘Yes it was’, Cisco nodded, ‘because I heard your heart skip a beat.’

‘I don’t believe you’, Caitlin narrowed her eyes.

And Cisco, well, he grinned, again, and put a hand around her shoulders.

‘Let me tell you about the time I got Ronnie drunk and we started playing two lies one truth.’

‘Uhm’, Caitlin eloquently said, after a beat.

‘I know enough things that you like in the bedroom that I could make you scream in 6.7 seconds.’

Caitlin spluttered, and blushed a furious shade of red. She all but ran out of the room, to the sound of Cisco laughing his heart out.

○

‘What about smell?’

Cisco raised an eyebrow. ‘That one’s complicated. Because, on one hand, yeah I can smell your body wash and hair spray and the waffles you had for breakfast. But on the other hand… they’re called chemo signals.’

Caitlin nodded. ‘Chemical signals that communicate emotions. You can smell emotions?’

‘It’s not an exact science’, Cisco shook his head. ‘It’s different from person to person, but the baseline is the same. Anger, fear, disgust. Love, content, happiness. And weirder things.’

‘Like what?’, Caitlin asked, genuinely curious.

Cisco shrugged. ‘Arousal is the weirdest of them all. You and Ronnie in the same room was pretty chocking.’

Once again, Caitlin left the room spluttering and blushing.

○

But she came back a couple of hours later.

‘Having sex must be so intense for you.’

Cisco just grinned.

○

‘It’s a full moon tonight’.

Cisco nodded. ‘I know.’

But she seemed concerned, so Cisco smiled.

‘I’m not going to howl to the moon, Caitlin. I’ll be fine, I’ve been doing this for years. I’m in control.’

‘I know that.’, Caitlin nodded. ‘I just wanted to offer you some company, if you need it.’

‘Why?’, Cisco narrowed his eyes.

‘Wolves are pack creatures’, Caitlin said around a blush, making Cisco laugh. But he did spend the night binge watching the Walking Dead with her.

○

They were in a bar, and it was Barry that said it.

‘You have enhanced healing. You can’t get drunk either.’

‘Nope’, Cisco said, throwing back three shots of tequila in a row.

Caitlin sighed. ‘I’m still working on it. If I get it to work for Barry, it’ll work for you.’

‘Not exactly’, Cisco winced. ‘I need a specific strand of wolfsbane to get drunk, and a precisely controlled amount of it.’

‘What’s wolfsbane?’, Caitlin asked, and Cisco started explaining.

That, of course, led to a whole lot of experimenting on the side for Caitlin, but she seemed to enjoy it, and Cisco never got hurt.

○

One day, when Caitlin came into the cortex, Cisco started sneezing. Violently. And he didn’t stop.

When Caitlin came to his side to check on him, it only got worse.

‘I changed my body wash’, she frowned.

Cisco managed to take a deep breath, a whiff of something, and he all but ran to the other side of the room.

‘Mistletoe is harmful towards werewolves.’

Caitlin ran to the showers, and when she came back, wearing Star Lab merchandise, she hugged Cisco tightly and kept apologizing.

‘I can block it out, you know’, he told her. ‘Most of the times, the hearing and smell. I try not to pry, not to violate people’s privacy. But sometimes, I can’t do that.’

‘Okay’, Caitlin nodded. ‘It’s okay. I’m sorry.’

Cisco just hugged her tightly.

○

Cisco dragged Caitlin to a fair, when they got a night off. She kept saying that all the games were rigged, and that very few actually won. So Cisco took that as a challenge.

He headed straight to the hammer slam, spent the way there explaining to Caitlin exactly how it was rigged. But then, with the miracles of werewolf strength, he picked up the hammer and slammed it down as hard as he could.

Cisco won, of course, so he got Caitlin a huge teddy bear, much to her delight.

○

Caitlin didn’t take long to get sneaky.

At first, it was just little things. Getting Cisco to open jars with his claws, making him do the heavy lifting, making him take out bullets with his claw from Barry, but also doing grocery shopping with him to make sure the veggies were fresh.

It was after one of these shopping trips when it happened, in Caitlin's kitchen. They were on opposite sides of the table, unpacking the groceries.

‘Hey, you got poptarts’, Cisco frowned at the pack in his hand.

‘For breakfast’, Caitlin nodded.

‘But you hate poptars.’

‘You don’t’, she smiled, making Cisco grin.

‘What makes you think I’ll still be here in the morning?’

Caitlin just smiled at that, making her way around the table, grabbing the pack of poptars from Cisco’s hand and putting them down.

Then she very boldly put a hand around his neck and brought him forward, kissing him.

Cisco was shocked.

Caitlin’s lips were soft and wet, and her hand was hot against Cisco’s skin. It was... nice. And unexpected. So he let his senses take control.

Her heart was beating faster, but not incredibly so. She smelled like the slushee they had at the grocery store, and the normal blend of scents that defined Caitlin: like winter in the morning, fresh asphalt and Italian.  But underneath that, she smelled… content. And excited.

And when Cisco caught a trace of arousal from Caitlin, he started kissing her back. Brought his hands around her waist, and, on an impulse, Cisco picked Caitlin up and put her on the table, barely taking the time to shove the groceries aside.

Caitlin yelped against his lips, but was quick to catch on, wrapping her feet around his waist and intensifying the kiss.

When they pulled away to catch their breaths, Cisco’s eyes were gold, he knew they were.

Caitlin just stared, for a few long seconds, but then she licked her lips and swallowed, thickly.

‘I should not find glowing eyes as hot as I do.’

Cisco blinked, making his eyes fade back to normal.

‘I’m definitely going to be here in the morning’, was as he said, before he kissed her again.

○

Caitlin’s experiments changed after that, much to Cisco’s delight. But Caitlin threatened him with wolfsbane if he talked to Barry about their sex life, so Cisco kept all the information for himself.


	4. The Exes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> [Wiz](http://mr-stevens-head-of-catering.tumblr.com/): Your prompt, should you choose to accept it, is Iris and Linda fighting over Barry, but then realizing they’re into each other actually and getting together ^_^  
>  Me: What about Eddie? :”(  
> Wiz: Eddie ends up with Barry and Iris’s dad in their awesome bachelor house.  
> Me: Yeah, no. Eddie ends up with Barry period.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ... sorry dude. this ended up being eddie/barry with a tinsy tiny drop of iris/linda. ... honestly, idk what you were expecting :))
> 
> (in a world where Iris didn’t move in with Eddie, where she still stayed with Joe and Barry still stayed in his crappy apartment.   
> Eddie’s pov, but still third person… I wanna know more about Eddie.  
> I started writing this a while back, not really feeling it tbh. but after last night, after 1x19, yeaaaah I see why you guys ship it holy god.)

It started with Eddie breaking up with Iris, after the horrible double date from Hell.

The next day after that happened, Joe insisted on having a long conversation with Eddie. Joe told him that things shouldn’t change between them, that they were partners and they needed to be okay for that to work.

Eddie agreed as fast as he could.

Then, Joe told him that Iris seemed to be okay. That Barry came over, and that they spent the night watching old movies and eating icecream, just like they did when they were teenagers. Joe thought it did Iris some good.

Eddie thought that Barry should end up with Iris. He told Joe as much, but his partner just shrugged, and said that if two people are meant to be together, fate has a way of doing that.  Eddie still felt the need to assure Joe that he would be okay with it.

Ϟ

Things got weird, between Barry and him. Eddie expected it, but that didn’t mean he was okay with it.

So after a few days, of things being very awkward at work every time Barry was around, and after a few very pointed looks from Joe and even Captain Singh, Eddie caved in.

After a particularly difficult case, that only got closed because of the Flash and Cisco, Eddie made his way to Barry’s lab late one night, with two glasses and a bottle of vodka.

Barry tried to run. Eddie didn’t let him.

‘You’re still my friend, Bar’, was what Eddie said that made Barry freeze.

‘It doesn’t matter that Iris is the reason we became close, but we are. You’re my friend, and I don’t want that to stop just because I’m not with Iris anymore.’

Barry reacted weirdly. To say the least.

He just stared. Gaped, really, for a few long seconds.

Then, Barry wordlessly opened the bottle of vodka, took an alarmingly large drink out of it, and told Eddie that he was the Flash.

Eddie stared.

Then, Barry disappeared out of the lab, only to appear two seconds later with two burgers.

Eddie spent the rest of the night in awe.

Ϟ

Eddie called in sick the next day. He needed time to process, and sleep, because he spent most of the night awake, thinking about Barry. About what it meant, Barry being the Flash.

When he woke up, there was a big stack of pancakes in the kitchen, a few grilled cheese sandwiches and bacon, coffee that was still lukewarm.

He also had a text from Barry, who was letting him know when and where he was having dinner with Cisco and Caitlin, and inviting him along. Reluctantly, Eddie went.

Joe was also there, and Eddie couldn’t help but glare.

‘You knew’.

‘Yeah’, Joe nodded, slowly.

‘And Iris doesn’t.’

‘No’, Joe said equally as slow, emphasizing the vowel.

‘And I have to keep it a secret in order to protect her.’

‘You’re catching on quickly’, Caitlin said with a proud smirk on her face.

Eddie just looked at her, despair probably seeping through. ‘I have so many questions.’

‘That’s why we’re here, man’, Cisco grinned, patting him on the back.

‘I’ll leave you kids to it’, Joe got up, making all of them scoff.

The waitress came then, to get their orders, but Eddie was so distracted, Barry had to order for him. He ordered his favorite thing, though, and that had Eddie feeling better.

As they ate and had several beers, Cisco and Caitlin did most of the talking. Walking Eddie through everything that happened, from The Mist to the most recent metahuman wrecking havoc.

Eddie had a lot of questions, which he didn’t abstain to asking, and Caitlin and Cisco answered everything, with a warm tone and a witty joke. Eddie liked them, he really did, but Barry was silent. He barely said anything for the entire evening, and it pissed Eddie off.

When Barry did say something, he said that he broke up with Linda. They all offered their support, but Barry waved them off, saying he wasn’t feeling bad about it. They all eyed him wearily, but then Cisco ordered another round and it was forgotten.

Ϟ

Because Barry couldn’t get drunk, he was the designated driver. Eddie was the last one to get home, but he lingered in the car a bit.

‘Why did you tell me?’, is what Eddie decided to ask first.

Barry let his head fall against the headrest, and he didn’t look at Eddie, at all.

‘I don’t really know, Eddie. I hate lying, keeping this away from everyone, but I have to. The people who know, they’re in danger.’

‘I’m a cop, Bar. I’m already in danger.’

‘Yeah’, he breathed out. ‘Maybe that’s why it was easier, to tell you. And it will be easier, in the future.’

‘How?’, Eddie asked, skeptical.

‘It’ll be easier to explain things to you, when we’re dealing with a meta.’

‘But it won’t be easier for me to explain it in my reports’, Eddie argued and Barry had the decency to look sheepish.

‘I’m sorry’, he said lowly, startling Eddie. ‘You said we were friends, and I… haven’t been a very good friend to you. And I know this won’t change that, you know about me, that won’t make it better, but-‘

‘Are you an idiot?’, Eddie interrupted unkindly, realizing he maybe was a bit drunk.

Barry just blinked and finally turned to look at him, incredulous.

‘You’re still my friend’, Eddie said with conviction, ‘mask or not. And because you are my friend, I am going to tell you that I think you and Iris are meant to be together and I would have no problem with it.’

Barry blushed at that, and Eddie snorted, because it was adorable. Big bad superhero The Flash was adorable.

‘That’s not going to happen’, Barry managed to say after a while, but it only made Eddie smirk.

‘Yes it will’, the detective said while getting out of a car. ‘And I’ll be there to tease you all the way through it.’

Ϟ

The thing about Barry Allen, Eddie was quick to realize, was that he was absolutely oblivious.

It’s been weeks, and Barry was continuously oblivious.

Soon after Eddie broke up with Iris, and after Barry broke up with Linda, the two women went insane.

They were, for a lack of a better work, trying to seduce Barry.

Iris brought him lunch at the station every other day. Sometimes, coffee. Every now and then, she’d ask him for a story, or if he had any information on a story she was already writing.

The thing was, Eddie knew Iris. He saw right through her, noticed the little details, the way Iris would bite her lip, flip her hair over her shoulder or how she’d not-so-casually touch Barry every chance she got. She’d kiss his cheek every time she left and laughed at all his jokes, even the ones she didn’t understand.

Eddie saw this, clear as day. Barry, though, Barry was completely oblivious.

Linda was worse than Iris. She did the same things Iris did, but paired them with very short skirts and deep cleavages.

It was embarrassing to watch.

And Barry, bless his lovable soul, was completely oblivious.

Eddie tried to talk to him, about what Iris was doing, at least. Barry wouldn’t have it. At first he got flustered and he was blushing, but by the end of that discussion, Barry got angry. So Eddie let it go.

Ϟ

But a couple of days later, after a very disturbing metahuman was safely locked away in the pipeline, Eddie joined Barry, Caitlin and Cisco for a round of drinks.

Iris and Linda were also at the bar, with a couple of colleagues from work that were quickly forgotten.

Seeing Barry, awkwardly standing between Iris and Linda, the women both going out of their way to get Barry’s attention, it was difficult for Eddie to not burst out laughing.

Barry, though, he was oblivious, again and seemingly forever.

He acted completely normal, like he didn’t think it was weird that Linda’s boobs were practically in his face and that Iris hasn’t taken her hand off his thigh for the past hour. Barry just kept on talking to them, politely, jokingly, always trying to get Eddie, Caitlin or Cisco in on their conversation.

At one point, Caitlin, bless her soul, all but dragged Eddie to the bar, to get a refill. Eddie just laughed. A lot. So much so, that Caitlin ordered a coffee for him.

When he managed to calm down, Caitlin was smiling politely at him, even though it was clear she didn’t understand why he was laughing like a lunatic.

‘Is Barry always like this?’, Eddie asked her. ‘I mean, is he oblivious about everything, or just about women?’

Caitlin seemed to consider this.

‘He’s usually not this oblivious’, she said around a smile. ‘He’s quite smart, you know, and sharp.’

‘Then what the hell is happening?’, Eddie started laughing again, pointing at where Linda’s hand was in Barry’s hair and Iris’ was on his lower back. Caitlin sighed, and started laughing too.

‘I’ll talk to him’, Caitlin finally said.

‘Good’, Eddie nodded. ‘Maybe he’ll listen to you.’

Ϟ

Eddie doesn’t know how that conversation went, or if it even happened, because the next time he sees Caitlin, a month and a half later, she’s crying and giving Barry CPR.

There was a metahuman that could control electricity, and he zapped Barry, stopping his heart.

Cisco froze him with the cold gun before Eddie even got to understand what was happening. Then, he heard Caitlin scream, and Eddie felt the blood boil in his veins.

When he reached them, Barry was on the ground, not breathing, and Caitlin was doing compressions on his chest, counting out and yelling at him to wake up.

Cisco violently pulled her away, pointing out that her hands were shaking. Eddie wordlessly stepped in, pressing his hands to Barry’s chest in a rhythm that was all too familiar by now.

He counted out loud, and he stopped when he was supposed to, Caitlin arranging Barry’s head and breathing into his mouth.

Eddie has no idea how long they were at it, but he will never forget the feeling of Barry’s ribs cracking under his hands and the morbid and somewhat beautiful sight of Caitilin’s tears falling on the edge of Barry’s mask.

When Barry gasped, relief flooded through Eddie, and he sat down on the ground with a thud. Caitlin didn’t hesitate, in letting her head fall onto Barry’s chest, wrapping her arms around his torso, somewhat gingerly.

Eddie could relate, because he couldn’t seem to be able to keep his hands off either. So he put a hand on Barry’s shoulder, squeezing it tightly.

‘Don’t do that again’, the detective said, making Barry look at him.

‘Wait. Which one of you kissed me?’

Eddie blinked. Then, Barry licked his lips, still frowning at Eddie.

‘I guess you don’t wear cherry chapstick, do you?’

That made Caitlin pull back and get up, helping Barry do so too.

‘CPR doesn’t count as kissing’, Caitlin told Barry over a glare.

He scoffed. ‘Right. So the first one in the cortex didn’t count because it was actually a doppelganger metahuman, not me. Then, the one in Starling didn’t count, because we were under cover. And now, it doesn’t count because it was CPR.’

Caitlin narrowed her eyes. ‘Do you _want_ to kiss me?’

‘No’, Barry said somewhat strongly, even though he was blushing. Eddie still found it adorable, and Cisco was snickering at his side.

‘I don’t want to kiss you’, Barry went on, ‘Ronnie would literally set me on fire. I’m just saying’, he said pointedly, ‘we sure do kiss a lot for two people who aren’t interested in each other.’

Eddie couldn’t keep his mouth shut even if he tried.

‘You’re the most oblivious man I have ever met’, he told Barry, making them all look at him. ‘You having two gorgeous woman all but throwing themselves at you, and you completely ignore it. And now, you just died!’, maybe he said that a bit too loud, judging by how they all reared back. ‘And _this_ is what is on your head? Caitlin? Engaged Caitlin?!’

Before Barry got to respond, Caitlin put a hand on Eddie’s forehead.

‘Are you feeling okay?’, she asked, concerned. ‘Do you have a fever?’

Eddie spluttered, gently pushing her away.

Then he shook his head, clearing his mind, and turned to Barry.

‘We both have to be at work in 20, and Singh is going to kill us if we’re late.’

Barry groaned.

‘Come on’, Eddie put a comforting hand on his arm. ‘Zap us to my apartment , it’s closer. I’ll give you some clothes. ‘

Barry sighed, but agreed, and with one rushed thank you to Caitlin, he ran them to Eddie’s apartment.

Ϟ

Needless to say, work was difficult that day, because they were exhausted.

Joe knew what happened, and he kept getting coffee for both of them, and that helped, but only marginally.

Come lunch, Eddie went and got burgers, for both him and Barry, but when he got back to the lab, Iris was already there.

It was awkward, because it was clear that Iris wanted Eddie to leave. But Barry wouldn’t have it.

‘You said things aren’t awkward between the two of you’, he told Iris, somewhat pointedly.

‘They’re not’, she was quick to assure. ‘I just thought it would be nice, to have lunch. Just the two of us.’ It was said sweetly, paired with a batting of the eyelashes, and for some reason, it annoyed Eddie.

But it seemed to draw the same reaction from Barry, too.

‘You told me once’, he said to Iris, ‘that I keep turning you into the bad guy, because I keep making you say no. You’re doing the exact same thing.’

‘Barry’, Iris said with feeling, half shocked and half upset.

‘And it’s not real, Iris.’, Barry added.

Iris’ expression quickly turned to anger. Eddie felt like he was intruding, a lot, but he didn’t find it in himself to move.

‘You think I don’t know how I’m feeling?’, she said, making Barry sigh.

‘No, I just know you, Iris. You’re lonely. You were in a long term relationship’, his eyes skipped to Eddie, but didn’t make eye contact, ‘and now you’re out of it, and you don’t have that routine anymore. So you’re lonely.’

‘That’s not-‘, she tried arguing, but Barry didn’t let her.

‘I’ve known you for 15 years, Iris’, he said somewhat strongly. ‘And after every breakup, you come running back to me. Until someone else catches your eye, at least.’

‘Barry’, Iris said sternly, ‘that is so not-‘

‘And I’m fine with it’, he said a bit more softer. ‘That’s what friends are for. And I am, Iris, I still am your best friend. But that’s it.’

‘And you know it’, he added in a softer tone.

It took a few seconds, but Iris finally nodded, kissed Barry’s forhead, said ‘I’m sorry’, and headed for the door. Before she left, though, she turned around and narrowed her eyes.

‘Are you wearing Eddie’s shirt?’, she asked, making Barry blush instantly.

‘I spilled coffee on myself’, he said, a bit too quickly. But Iris seemed to accept it, because she rolled her eyes and left.

Eddie opened his mouth to say something, but Barry glared at him, going as far as pointing a finger at Eddie’s face.

‘Do not even think about talking about this.’

‘Just one question’, Eddie said, around a smile. ‘You plan on doing anything about Linda too?’

‘I already did’, Barry sighed, resigned. ‘Visited her at work, had a long talk. I guess she talked to Iris about it, afterwards, hence the-‘, he didn’t finish, just waved his hands in the general direction of the door.

Eddie couldn’t help but start laughing.

‘Your history with women is so entertaining to watch’, he said, making Barry glare.

‘I’m just here for your entertainment’, he said, dripping sarcasm.

‘So, about Caitlin…’, Eddie wiggled his eyebrows, making Barry groan and hit his head on the desk. Eddie just continued laughing.

Ϟ

On Christmas Morning, Eddie woke up tied to a chair, with blood running down the side of his face and with Leonard Snart grinning at him.

‘What?’, was all he managed to say.

Snart raised an eyebrow. ‘This didn’t work with pretty doctor lady and the smart kid. I have a good feeling about you.’

That still confused Eddie.

‘What do you want?’

‘Barry Allen, of course’.

With that, Snart pulled out Eddie’s phone and called Barry, putting it on speaker.

To their surprise, it was Caitlin that answered.

‘Get your perfectly shaped butt down here, Detective Thawne’, she sounded pissed and she was using his title. Eddie knew that meant that Caitlin was very mad, and judging by the face Cold pulled, he realized it too.

‘Barry won’t let me open my presents because you’re not here’, she said in a more playful voice, that seemed to shock Cold even more.

‘Detective Thawne can’t come to the phone right now’, Snart said after a lengthy pause. ‘He’s a little bit tight up.’

‘Seriously?’, Caitlin screeched out after a beat. ‘Again, Cold? This is the third time, Jesus Christ. How many more times until you figure out that it’s not going to work!’

And she kept ranting. On and on, about how Cold will never get his hands on Barry, about how the Flash is a lot stronger and blablabla, Caitlin babbled, not letting Snart say anything. He grew more and more impatient, and tried to stop her from talking, unsuccessfully.

Between one blink and the next, Barry was there. Not in his suit, but in a dark green ugly Christmas sweater, and he was on top of Cold, all but straddling him, punching his face. Repeatedly.

Over the phone, Caitlin kept yelling at him to stop. But Barry didn’t, not until Eddie said his name.

Barry did stop hitting Cold, and then he growled and before he realized what was happening, Eddie was free and Snart was unconscious and thoroughly tied to the chair.

And then, Eddie had a handful of Barry. Who was hugging him, mostly, running his hands up and down Eddie’s body.

Barry was shaking, slightly, and babbling, a lot of anger and desperation seeping through.

‘I’m sick and tired of the people I care about getting used against me. This is bullshit, and you’re hurt. He hurt you, and it’s all because of me. This has to stop. I don’t know how, but this needs to stop. I’m going to stop this, I have to, I can’t-‘

Eddie kissed him. Just so Barry would calm down.

It should have surprised him, Eddie should be surprised by the way he acted. But he wasn’t, not really, not even when he felt Barry completely freeze under his touch.

What did surprise Eddie, though, was that after a few beats, Barry kissed him back. He first took a deep breath through his nose, and then he moved his lips, hesitantly putting a hand on Eddie’s waist.

So Eddie didn’t hesitate, in burying a hand in Barry’s hair, and using his other one to bring Barry closer.

It was a sweet kiss. Soft and hesitant. Unhurried. Like they had all the time in the world.

But they didn’t, because Eddie was bleeding and his head hurt.

So he was the one to pull away. Barry was looking at him with eyes wide, his lips were as red as his cheeks and he was breathing way too fast.

‘Okay?’, Eddie asked, slowly, going as far as wrapping his fingers around Barry’s and squeezing them gently.

‘Yeah’, Barry breathed out. But then he rushed forward and kissed Eddie again, short and chaste, before pulling back entirely. ‘Joe’s on his way with backup.’

‘Go’, Eddie nodded, regretting it instantly because his head hurt. Barry saw it, and he hesitated.

‘You have no reason to be here’, Eddie said strongly, ‘you’re wearing an ugly Christmas sweater, for god’s sake.’

‘Hey!’, Barry said, seemingly affronted.

‘Sorry, darling’, Eddie answered as sarcastically as he could. ‘The reindeer’s antlers bring out your eyes.’

‘Darling?’, Barry asked, incredulously, blushing all the way down to his neck.

‘Just go!’, Eddie begged, blushing himself. ‘I’ll come by the house later.’

‘With presents’, Barry smiled, walking backwards towards the exit. ‘Caitlin is _vicious_ ’.

Eddie laughed, he couldn’t help it, as Barry ran away with a colored flash.

Ϟ

Eddie and Joe managed to get back to the house in time for lunch.

They stopped by Eddie’s place before, so he could wash up and change, and pick up the Christmas presents, much to Caitlin’s pleasure.

Everybody fussed over Eddie, because he had a couple of ugly bruises and scrapes and a concussion, but he was pretty okay. He was denied sleep, though, for a couple of hours, and he had a massive headache.

But they all had lunch, and Eddie ended up sitting between Iris and Barry. It wasn’t as weird as it should have been, possibly because Barry kept their thighs touching for the entire time.

Then, they all scattered around the living room, drinking eggnog or hot chocolate, and watched movies for a couple of hours. In theory, they were Christmas movies, and Nightmare before Christmas did fit under that category, but Eddie was very confused about Cisco’s choice of Die Hard and Caitlin’s choice of an animated movie about a kid who could see ghosts.

But Barry sat by him on the couch, and every time Eddie felt like he was about to fall asleep, Barry made sure he wouldn’t, either with constant poking or bad jokes.

Ϟ

Barry also didn’t let heave leave for the night, not even after he was allowed to sleep.

So Eddie slept in Barry’s old room, as Barry insisted he could take the couch. But Eddie couldn’t let him do that. So they laid next to each other on Barry’s bed, in the dark. They were barely touching, and it was awkward, but Eddie was exhausted, barely able to move.

But he did move, just enough to wrap his fingers around Barry’s. And he felt him relax, letting out a sigh that sounded relieved. And then, Eddie felt a kiss to his forehead, which made him smile, and then he fell asleep.

Ϟ

Eddie slept for 10 hours, but Barry was still there when he woke up.

With his back against the headboard, a bowl of popcorn and a cup of coffee on the nightstand, reading a ridiculously thick book. Barry’s hair was messy, and his t-shirt had an already dried coffee stain on the collar, and his hands were absently running through Eddie’s hair.

So Eddie wordlessly took the book away from Barry, and all but pinned him to the bed.

Barry laughed, blushing, and Eddie was still finding that adorable.

‘How’s your head?’, Barry asked softly, running a finger over Eddie’s temple.

‘On my neck’, he nodded seriously, earning an eye roll from Barry.

‘Do you want some breakfast, maybe?’, he asked, wincing. ‘Some coffee? A shower?’

Eddie narrowed his eyes. ‘Am I making you uncomfortable?’

Barry closed his eyes and bent his head, a particularly sour expression on his face. ‘That’s not the word I would use.’

That’s all the assurance Eddie needed, so he started kissing Barry’s neck, making him squirm, but he quickly went on to kiss his lips. And well, after a while of that, Barry really didn’t seem uncomfortable anymore.

Ϟ

When they told Joe, they were both flustered and there was babbling involved, on Barry’s part, and stammering, on Eddie’s.

Joe just laughed.

For a long time.

Like, for about half an hour.

It was mildly disconcerting.

Ϟ

When they told Cisco and Caitlin, Cisco didn’t even bat an eye, he just congratulated them quickly and started whining about being single.

Caitlin stared at them for a few long, awkward moments, then she took a deep breath, said ‘This is the hottest thing’, and all but ran to the bar.

Ϟ

They didn’t get to tell Iris, not really.

But they were at Jitters, one day, and Iris walked in. With Linda.

The women didn’t see them, so they didn’t see how Barry and Eddie’s jaws dropped, when Iris kissed Linda quickly on the lips, and when Linda playfully slapped Iris’ ass on her way to the bar.

‘Oh my god’, Iris said when they finally saw them. ‘I… The things is, we-‘

‘We bonded’, Linda interrupted quickly, ‘over Barry rejecting us. And we…-‘

‘Kept bonding’, Iris said, slowly.

Eddie lost it. He started laughing. Hysterically.

‘I’m sorry’, Iris said and Eddie waved her off. He was still laughing. Barry was still staring, with his jaw dropped.

So Eddie forcefully shut his mouth, and kissed Barry.

Then, he turned to Iris. ‘There’s nothing to be sorry for’, he grinned.

Iris and Linda both grinned back.

Ϟ

After the girls left, Eddie couldn’t help but ask:

‘Should we feel bad? That our ex-girlfriends turned lesbian after we broke up with then?’

Barry smirked.

‘I don’t think we should feel bad. Considering what we did last night.’

There was a pause.

‘And this morning.’

Barry put his hand on Eddie’s thigh.

‘And in about ten minutes.’

Barry grinned.

Eddie rolled his eyes, but he did grab a hold of Barry's hand and hurried to finish his coffee, because he knew that in a couple of minutes Barry will run them both to whichever was nearer: either one of their apartments, Joe’s house if they were sure it was empty, or, on one unforgettable occasion, an abandoned part of Star Labs.

Ϟ

Eddie remembered, a few months ago, that Joe said that if two people are meant to be together, fate had a way of doing that. He doesn't know if it was fate that brought him and Barry together, or Iris and Linda. 

But, he figured, it's either that, or a particle accelerator exploding.

Either way, Eddie was okay with it.  


	5. The bomb is ticking

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Team Flash heads into Starling City for Oliver and Felicity's wedding, Barry has to deal with his feelings for Caitlin, and with the way she's pushing him away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did promise you some Snowbarry. Better late than never ^.^  
> This started out as one of the many AU posts on tumblr, but it's so far from it, the original prompt isn't even worth mentioning :)

Barry didn’t really like coming to Starling City. Yes, he liked seeing his friends, but since the beginning, there hasn’t been a time when him being in Starling didn’t mean trouble.

Except this time, thank God.

He was in Starling for Felicity and Oliver’s wedding, and they really didn’t need any trouble.

The ceremony went on without a hitch. It was a small gathering, just their friends and whatever remaining family there was left. But it was sweet, Felicity looked absolutely gorgeous and Oliver looked like the happiest man alive.

Afterwards, the party went on late into the night. Barry had a great time, he ate a lot of good food and he danced with, basically, every woman there, from Felicity to Lyla, from Caitlin to baby Sara. He even danced with Cisco, at one point. It was fun.

But now, it was 3 am, he was in a very fancy hotel room in Starling City, all alone, unable to sleep.

He would’ve shared a room with Cisco, but there was something, a wordless conversation that happened between Cisco and Caitlin, and they decided on sharing a room, leaving Barry alone.

His thoughts kept wondering to Caitlin, like they always did every time he had the time these days. Because things have changed between Caitlin and him, and Barry hated it.

When Ronnie left, not Central City, but when he left Caitlin, she didn’t tell Barry what was the reason for their breakup. Cisco knew, Barry was sure of it, but he wasn’t saying anything.

Even before that, Caitlin was pulling herself away from Barry. But when Ronnie left her, it only got worse.

She still helped him, patched him up when he needed it, offered words of advice even when he didn’t even know he needed them. Caitlin still helped Barry become a better person, and she still helped the Flash become a better hero.

But she was colder, even colder then how she was when he woke up from the coma. Just towards him, she acted the same with Cisco or Joe and Iris. But now, Caitlin shied away from his touch. She didn’t return the hugs, she didn’t take his hand when he extended it towards her. Caitlin would only touch him when needed, when she was shoving him in the right direction or when she was patching him up.

Barry tried talking to her.

‘What are you talking about, Barry? Everything is fine.’

That’s what Caitlin said, what she always said, but she barely looked Barry in the eye anymore. It hurt him, surprisingly so.

Barry knew he cared about Caitlin. But it was only when she started pushing him away when he realized _just how much_ he cared about her. As cliche as it was, it was the truth. 

And it sucked.

With those thoughts in mind, with emotions being pushed in his heart by the lovely wedding of two people who, for the longest of times, didn’t think they deserved to be happy, and with too much adrenaline still running through his veins, Barry decided to go for a run. He didn’t bother changing out of his pajamas, he’ll be running fast enough that nobody will see him.

When he opened the door to his hotel room, though, Barry was faced with a sight that made him pause. For an embarrassing amount of time.

Because Caitlin was there. On the hallway.

She was sitting on the ground, back resting against the wall, just outside of her and Cisco’s hotel room. Her hair, that hours ago was up in a complicated braid, was now falling down her shoulders, in messy but still defined curls.

Her eyes were closed, her breathing was slow, the dark blue gown she was wearing was now pulled around her knees, her ankles crossed over the plush carpet, her heels lying on the ground next to her.

Barry kneeled down in front of her, but Caitlin didn’t stir. He couldn’t help but smile, because she looked peaceful.

He woke her up by gently running a hand over her arm, saying her name a couple of times.

Caitlin woke up with a groan, blinking at him a couple of times.

‘What’s wrong?’, she asked, and her voice sounded scratchy.

‘I was about to ask you that’, Barry said, gently. ‘Seeing as you’re sleeping on the hallway, not in your hotel room.’

Caitlin blushed at that, and scrunched up her nose. ‘I’ve been sexiled.’

Barry’s jaw dropped, his eyes skipping to Cisco’s hotel room.

‘That’s my boy’, he couldn’t help but say proudly, making Caitlin punch his shoulder, even though she was trying her best not to laugh.

‘With who, though?’, Barry couldn’t help but wonder, making Caitlin’s expression turn serious.

‘You wouldn’t believe me even if I told you.’

He didn’t have an answer to that, and he didn’t want to think about it, not now. He’ll probably be hearing it from Cisco soon enough, either way.

So Barry did the only thing he could think of. He extended his hand out to Caitlin.

‘Come on’, he said softly. ‘You can have my bed.’

Caitlin flinched, and didn’t move to take his hand.

‘No, it’s fine. Thank you for the offer, but I’ll just, uhm-‘

‘Stay on the ground all night?’, Barry raised an eyebrow. ‘Listening to Cisco have sex?’

Caitlin winced, a disgusted look on her face. She reluctantly grabbed a hold of Barry’s hand, and he pulled her to her feet. He wordlessly took Caitlin’s shoes off the ground, and followed her into his room.

‘Can I use your shower?’, she asked in a small voice.

Barry nodded, wordlessly going to his suitcase, pulling out a pair of his boxers and a t-shirt. Caitlin took them, blushing, and made her way to the bathroom, taking the clothes, but not looking at Barry.

When Caitlin came out of the bathroom a few minutes later, wearing Barry’s clothes, her long legs bare and out in the open, her hair falling over her shoulders, wetting the t-shirt, Barry felt… Something.

With a capital S.

He swallowed it down, though, the pang of want and the deep disappointment of knowing the impossibility of it.

Caitlin hesitated, so Barry was quick to assure her.

‘Go to sleep, Caitlin. I can’t sleep, anyway, I’m just gonna read.’

‘But-‘

‘It’s fine, really’, he tried his best to smile.

She sighed, deeply, but got under the covers, as Barry turned around pointedly, grabbing his book and getting comfortable on an armchair.

After reading two pages, he heard a sniff. Followed by another one, a bit louder. When he looked at the bed, Barry saw that the pile of covers that was Caitlin was shivering.

She was crying.

Barry didn’t hesitate, he put his book down and made his way to the bed, sitting on the side Caitlin wasn’t using and putting a hand to her hips, probably.

‘What’s wrong?’, he whispered, and Caitlin let out a hiccuppy sob, moving her body away from him.

‘Why are you doing that?’, Barry found himself asking, hand still hovering over her body. Caitlin didn’t answer, she just kept on sniffing and tightening the covers around her.

‘You keep moving away from me and I don’t know why.’, Barry whispered. ‘It hurts, Cait, you’re breaking my heart.’

That made Caitlin move, a jerk reaction, throwing the covers away and standing up in bed. Her eyes were wide and there were tears on her face.

‘Barry, I… That’s not-‘

‘But it is.’, Barry interrupted her, as gently as he could. ‘Ever since Ronnie left you, and even before that, you’ve been pushing me away and I don’t know why.’

‘I’m always by your side’, Caitlin said strongly. ‘I help you catch the bad guys, I patch you up, I-‘

‘You barely look me in the eye’, Barry said slowly. ‘You flinch when I try to touch you and it… I don’t know why. I don’t know what I did wrong.’

‘You did nothing wrong, Barry.’, Caitlin said, and he believed her.

‘Then why?’

Caitlin took a deep breath, and wiped her face with the sleeve of the shirt she was wearing. She spoke softly, slowly, but she didn’t look at Barry.’

‘Ronnie left me because he realized I wasn’t in love with him anymore.’

Barry tried to say something, starting with her name, but she wouldn’t have it.

‘No, it’s… he was right. I’m not in love with him anymore. I love him’, she said around a sigh. ‘I’ll always love him, but now… I love him as much as I love Cisco. And I…’ she took a deep breath and finally looked up at Barry. ‘And I love you just as much.’

Barry swallowed, around the lump in his throat and forced himself not to look away from her.

‘Then why-‘

‘Because that’s not normal, Barry’, Caitlin all but exploded. Her voice was still barely above a whisper, but there was force behind it.

‘Love doesn’t come easily for me’, she went on with a shaky voice. ‘It took Ronnie years, and Cisco… he kept me alive, after the explosion, I wouldn’t have made it if it wasn’t for him. I owe him my life and my sanity, of course I love Cisco. But you….’

She looked lost. Barry hated it. But he couldn’t say anything, he needed to hear what she had to say.

‘I don’t know why, if it’s because you’re you or because you’re the Flash, but I fell in love with you quickly, so quickly and I don’t know what to do with it.’

She was still crying. And Barry’s heart was beating rapidly in his chest, he felt like he was going to be sick. But he took her hand, and she didn’t hesitate in squeezing his fingers back, which brought him comfort. Enough comfort to make him brave enough to speak again, even if it was barely over a whisper.

‘There’s a big difference, between loving me and being in love with me.’

Caitlin shed another tear at that, but she didn’t look away from him.

‘Do you remember Everyman?’

Barry frowned, not understanding what he had to do with anything, but he nodded nonetheless.

‘When he was impersonating you’, Caitlin went on, looking down at her lap, at their hands that were still intertwined, ‘he kissed me. And I thought it was weird, at first, but then… I kissed him back. You.’

Barry stopped breathing, but Caitlin didn’t seem to notice, because she went on.

‘And it scared me, that I did it, that I kissed you back, that I liked it. Because I was supposed to be in love with Ronnie. And then I started thinking about it, about why Everyman would think that we’d be like that, and once I started thinking about it, I couldn’t stop.’

She was speaking fast, too fast, barely catching a breath between words. And she was still crying and not looking at Barry.

‘And it scared me, because we work together, and we barely have time to be friends, let alone anything else. And that’s exactly what I was thinking with Ronnie, at the beginning and I still loved Ronnie, and you still loved Iris and it wasn’t right, it’s not right.’

Caitlin closed her eyes, tightly, taking a few deep breaths, to calm herself down.

Barry didn’t know what to do. Should he run? Should he stay? Should he kiss her? Should he let her sleep?

He didn’t know what to feel. He was excited and happy. And scared and disappointed.

And confused. He was still confused. He understood everything Caitlin said, but there was still a vital piece of information missing.

‘Caitlin’, he said softly, giving her hand a squeeze. ‘Why are you crying?’

She opened her eyes at that, glaring at Barry with a surprising amount of power.

‘I’m drunk and lonely’, she pouted, and after a beat of silence, Barry snickered.

But he also moved, got under the covers and extended a hand to Caitlin. She hesitated, but not long, before she turned her back to Barry. That surprised him, and he was ready to run, heart breaking all over again.

But then Caitlin plastered her back to his front, and grabbed a hold of his hand, pulling his arm over her waist. Then she sighed deeply, seemingly in content, and wished him a very sweet ‘good night’.

Barry squeezed her waist and arranged the covers over them, and then he moved her hair out of his face.

‘You know what makes me really sad?’, Barry whispered close to her ear.

Caitlin seemed half asleep, because all she managed to do was hum somewhat questioningly.

‘That he stole our first kiss from us.’

She didn’t say anything to that, but she did sigh again. Soon enough, she was asleep. It took Barry longer to fall asleep, but he didn’t let go of Caitlin.

└●┐

Barry woke up to the sound of Caitlin’s phone ringing. Before he even understood what was happening, she was pushing him off her. Apparently, during the night, they moved until Caitlin was laying on her back and Barry was sprawled half on top of her.

She ignored it, though, completely, stumbling to her feet and answering her phone.

‘What?’, she growled in a very scratchy voice, turning her back to Barry just as she was pulling his boxers down, from where they had ridden up during the night. Barry bit on his lower lip to keep himself from groaning out loud.

‘You cannot be serious.’, Caitlin said in what Barry recognized to be her very angry voice.

‘Fine!’, she screeched quickly after. ‘Cisco, you owe me so much after this, _so much_.’ Then, Caitlin sighed. ‘I’m on my way.’

After she hung up and mumbled a few curses under her breath, she turned around, moving quickly around the room, putting her shoes on and gathering her clothes.

‘Team superhero breakfast is in an hour’, she said without looking anywhere near Barry. ‘You know Felicity and Oliver want us there, so don’t be too late.’

‘Caitlin-‘, he tried, still in bed.

‘Cisco said the coast is clear so I’ll go and get ready in our room.’

‘Caitlin-‘, he tried again, getting out of bed.

‘Thank you for letting me sleep here, I do appreciate it, Barry. I’ll see you soon, okay?’

‘Caitlin’, he said with a bit more force, making her look up at him, finally.

She was blushing, and her eyes were full of hesitance, at first. But after a few seconds of just looking at Barry, Caitlin’s expression turned into one of defiance, and she pointedly lifted her chin.

‘Not now. We’re here for Felicity and Oliver.’

‘But later?’, Barry asked, and afterwards, he would think about how desperate he sounded. He took a step towards her and Caitlin flinched, hard, backing away a step.

Caitlin looked at Barry for a few more beats, but then she shook her head and pointedly walked out of the room, forcefully shutting the door behind her with a bang.

Barry took a deep breath, and decided he’ll ignore how the echoing sound was completely in sync with his heart breaking.

└●┐

So Barry decided to go to breakfast, and try to act as normal as he could.

He was with Felicity, smiling down at her as she babbled about something he was barely paying attention to, when Cisco came into the room. With Laurel.

Cisco and Laurel. Holding hands, blushing and giggling.

Barry’s jaw dropped and he gaped, making Felicity giggle. But as his eyes followed the pair’s path, he saw a splatter of honey brown in the corner of his eye.

Caitlin was already looking at him, amusement clear in her eyes.

And just like that, Barry didn’t feel horrible anymore. They were going to be okay. So he smiled back at her, until she ducked her head, turning around and heading towards Cisco and Laurel.

‘You know’, Felicity bumped their shoulders together. ‘If Laurel spent the night in Cisco’s room, then where did Caitlin go?’

Barry hesitated, making Felicity raise an amused eyebrow.

‘It’s complicated’, he finally said, his heart skipping a beat and cheeks reddening.

Felicity beamed up at him, playfully hitting his shoulder.

‘But you’re acknowledging it’s _something_ , Barry. That’s important.’

He really had no answer to that.

└●┐

When it was time for them to go, Barry managed to be alone with Oliver. After they hugged, Barry grinned at him.

‘You know, I’ve been waiting all weekend to say something. You were wrong.’

Oliver frowned. ‘About what?’

‘When you told me that guys like us don’t get the girl.’

Oliver’s eyes immediately soughed out Felicity, and the way he looked at her, eyes filled with love and devotion, it warmed Barry’s heart.

‘Felicity always tells me’, Oliver said looking back at him, ‘that you need at least three study points to pinpoint a pattern.’

‘Not one’, Oliver pointed at himself, ‘not two’, he looked at where Cisco was sweetly hugging Laurel, ‘but three’, Oliver went as far as poking Barry in the chest.

‘Prove me wrong, Barry’, Oliver said pointedly.

And that was that.

└●┐

As soon as they got back to Central City, Barry talked with Cisco.

Well, he talked at Cisco.

Cisco just stood there, with a somewhat bewildered look on his face, and listened to everything Barry had to say.

And Barry had to say a lot.

He poured his heart out to Cisco. He said everything he was to afraid to say before, things he wanted Caitlin to know, thing he was afraid to tell her.

After he managed to calm down, Cisco sat down next to him, bumping their shoulders together.

‘Laurel says we’re insane.’, is what he started by saying. ‘That we’re giving this a try. Between arrows and guns and vibrations and metahumans, we shouldn’t have the luxury of trying to be happy.’

‘That sounds like something Oliver would say’, Barry frowned. ‘Well, Oliver pre-Felicity.’

Cisco smiled at that.

‘She also says that she can’t help it.’

‘Yeah’, Barry sighed after a beat. ‘I understand that.’

Cisco hummed and stood up, putting a comforting hand on Barry’s shoulder.

‘The thing about Caitlin’, he said slowly, ‘is that she’s like… a ticking bomb. If you don’t know what you’re looking for, you won’t see it. And it goes on and on, methodically, second by second. But eventually, when the timer gets to zero, it just… everything explodes. And it’s all too hot, and too close, and you get wrapped up in it. And it’s too much, and it hurts, and you… wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.’

Barry was rendered speechless.

‘You’re not the only one who loves Caitlin’, Cisco grinned cheekily. ‘She’s my best friend, and I know her better than she does. Sometime.’

‘And on that note’, Cisco winks, ‘trust me when I tell you that Caitlin wants you. She just doesn’t believe you would ever want her.’

└●┐

Barry takes things slowly.

With smiles and shoulder bumps. He makes her coffee and brings her lunch.

And then, she starts smiling back. So he starts extending a hand for her to take, and eventually, she does. And she starts hugging him.

And once that starts, he can’t stop. But she always hugs him back now.

It’s exactly like Cisco said.

With Caitlin, everything moved methodically, one step at a time. But it was all heading to that zero, and Barry could feel it, getting closer and closer, and he was excited, and scared, and very much so, falling completely in love with Caitlin Snow.

└●┐

When that timer struck zero, it wasn’t in the middle of a fight (as Cisco predicted). It didn’t happen around a medical table (as Felicity predicted). It wasn’t in the middle of a calm moment, when nothing happened (as Barry would have wanted).

When that timer struck zero, it was all of the above.

They were in the middle of a fight, trying to catch a metahuman who could breathe fire.

They were around a medical table, as Caitlin was tending to some minor burns Barry got. Well, they were minor now.

They were in the middle of a calm moment, because Cisco made a joke, that was so bad, it had both Barry and Caitlin freezing, just staring at him.

But then, Caitlin snorted. She seemed surprised by her reaction, judging by the way she raised a hand to cover her mouth. But then, like she couldn’t help it, she laughed.

And it was a delightful sound, that made Barry ignore all the ways his body hurt.

Caitlin looked amazing, he thought, as she bowed her head back and laughed breathlessly, with her eyes scrunched shut and hands clapped tightly in front of her chest.

When she calmed down a bit, Caitlin was still smiling and giggling, and when she looked back to Barry, he couldn’t help himself.

He got up, and grabbed a hold of Caitlin’s elbow, turning her towards him. Barry got close, but he didn’t kiss her, not immediately.

Caitlin looked at him with big, shocked eyes, but after a bit, she exhaled, slowly, her eyes moving to Barry’s lips, and staying there.

That’s when Barry kissed her, bravely taking a deep breath through his nose, and slowly, so slowly, brought their lips together.

It was a hesitant kiss, on both their parts, the only point of contact being their lips and his hand on her elbow. But it still took his breath away, and it made his knees go weak. 

And it did hurt, as Cisco said, because Barry couldn’t not think of the danger she was in, just by being by his side. And it was hot, because Barry wasn’t aware of anything else, except for her. And she was close, and she was enveloping him completely.

Caitlin’s hair smelled like lemons and she was wearing chocolate flavored chapstick. And when she moved, her teeth catching on his lower lip, Barry knew that there wasn’t anywhere else he’d rather be.

‘This is lovely and all’, Cisco’s sarcastic voice came through, ‘but I am standing right here.’

They didn’t pull away.

‘Seriously’, Cisco insisted, ‘ _right here_.’

Caitlin smiled against his lips, and brought her hands up, around his neck. And she pulled Barry closer, until their bodies were touching, and she giggled, against his lips, before opening them up coaxing Barry into doing the same.

And well, after that, Barry was aware of Cisco groaning and calling them really terrible names as he all but ran out of the Cortex. But Barry couldn’t be bothered to care, not with Caitlin in his arms, spinning his world upside down and exploding everything into happiness.


	6. Official Superhero and Villain Naming Office

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> [mr-stevens-head-of-catering](http://mr-stevens-head-of-catering.tumblr.com/) asked: _Here's one for ya. Cisco opens up an "Official Super Hero Naming Office". He may or may not have interns._

It’s all Felicity’s fault, really. She started it.

She started calling Cisco every time they got a new villain wrecking havoc in Starling City. The call didn’t last more than a minute, in which Felicity shortly explained what the villain did, and Cisco quickly suggested a name.

Somehow, though, Cisco isn’t really sure how Felicity did it, but every name he picked ended up in the news. On the tv, in newspapers and blogs.

Cisco felt proud, he wasn’t going to lie about it.

And, for the sake of history keeping, he started a blog. Another blog. On which he posted every name he chose, alongside a short description of the villain in cause, and a brief explanation of his thought process.

It wasn’t just villains, though. It was superheroes too, and tech. He named the White Canary, and the Canary Cry. And, of course, the Wizard’s Wand and so on.

Of course, Cisco wasn’t stupid. It was an anonymous blog, with alarmingly high security behind it. He was a paranoid man, he knew it, but it paid off, because people started visiting his blog.

And commenting.

And arguing in the comment section.

Cisco got hate! Which, didn’t upset him as much as it should. All publicity was publicity.

Sooner than he had imagined it, his blog had hundredths of thousands of followers and it was quoted, not just in the media and news, but a couple of times, Captain Singh quoted it in official statements, and, twice, the mayor.

Cisco was hella proud.

Of course, he said nothing about it.

And, of course, Caitlin figured it out.

What he doesn’t understand is how she figured out the password. Of course, she never said anything, and denied it when he asked, but Cisco knew it was her.

He knew Caitlin was responsible for hacking his blog and… aestetheticizing it. She made it prettier. She changed the theme, the header, the name of it. She put links in the sidebar, and she went through every post, fixing the fonts and arranging the paragraphs, adding pictures when possible and tagging everything.

Cisco tried, more than once, to make her to fess up. Without outing himself, of course. She didn’t. He tried tracing her work, but he was met with a particular hard encryption he couldn’t bypass, that just screamed _courtesy of Felicity_. So he stopped trying. But he did start getting her coffee and treats. Daily.

And he started drafting his things. He kept the posts in the drafts for a day, time in which Caitlin arranged it. Then, he would publish it. Of course, without exchanging a word with Caitlin.

After a couple of months, something new transpired.

Someone started commenting, in the posts themselves. It was written with a pink italic font, and it was very… professional. The language was a lot more professional than Cisco’s. And it explained things, expanded his words, with things like “the chief of police said that…”, or “the mayor thinks…”, or “The Arrow would like to mention than…”

It was clearly Felicity. Of course, she denied everything.

Cisco started sending her flowers and chocolates.

After another month, Cisco changed the name of the blog into **Official Superhero and Villain Naming Office**.

The next day, he got a piece of chocolate cake from Caitlin and a yet unreleased game from Felicity.

He spent the day grinning.

≡

Everything exploded when Cisco became a superhero.

Which was still a sentence he was struggling to say out loud.

But he accepted it, quickly, his desire to help Barry protect their city overcoming his embarrassment. And he worked on it, perfecting his powers fairly quickly, and developing tech to help him on the way.

When everything calmed down, Cisco found himself at 3 am in the lab, in front of his computer, a blank text post for his blog opened.

He had no idea what to say.

It was very personal.

He felt like he was going to put his heart, his mind and his everything into a single, anonymous, blog text post.

He was so lost in his thoughts he didn’t even hear Caitlin come in.

She startled him, by rolling away his chair, and sitting on another one next to him. Then, she pulled out her phone and skyped Felicity.

Together, the two women wrote the post. They explained his powers, his tech, without actually naming him. Caitlin uploaded pictures she must have took of his suit, that looked professional and … personal.

Cisco was too emotional to say anything.

So he just stood there, completely in awe of the two women he cared about. And by the way they talked, softly and fondly, they felt the same way about him.

‘We still have to pick a name’, Felicity said, frowning.

‘Any ideas?’, Caitlin asked, turning to look at him.

He gulped, swallowing hard, but couldn’t come up with anything, for the life of him. So Cisco shook his head.

‘How about Quake?’, Felicity asked. ‘Cause he shakes things.’

Caitlin shook her head. ‘That’s a Marvel superhero.’

Cisco gaped at her.

‘What?’, she said, rather defensively. ‘It’s your fault anyway, you got me the first comic book.’

Cisco just… leaned his head on her shoulder and sighed. Shakily.

She absently patted his knee, turning to look at Felicity’s again.

‘It’s not about shaking, anyway.’, she went on. ‘I mean, yes, he does make thinks shake, but I think the fact that he makes that happen with vibrations is more important. The how, not the what.’

‘Vibrations’, Felicity nodded, slowly.

‘Vibe’, Caitlin said, easily. His heart jumped in his chest, and he turned to look at her with a new found awe.

‘Vibe’, Felicity tried it out. ‘Sounds pretty cool.’

‘That it does’, Caitlin nodded, typing the name on the blog.

She quickly published it, said goodbye to Felicity and when she turned to look at Cisco, Caitlin started laughing. Pretty hysterically.

‘What?’, he managed to say, as she enveloped him in a strong hug.

‘You’re awesome’, Caitlin said, with feeling.

‘I am pretty awesome’, Cisco said, somewhat shakily, finally returning the hug.

Caitlin chuckled against his neck, kissed his cheek and urged him up, saying she’ll buy him a drink.

≡

Cisco thought that that was the best night of his life, really.

For two weeks.

Then, the vibrator puns started. Mostly from Caitlin, to everyone's surprise, or sometimes from Felicity.

At first, Cisco blushed, a lot. Then, he started teasing the girls right back.

And a couple of months later, when he showed Caitlin just how precisely he could use his powers to make her moan, the bad puns stopped. And were replaced with kisses and tender touches.


	7. The right time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> [battlships](http://battlships.tumblr.com/) asked: The ridiculously angsty soulmates-name-tattooed-on-your-body au where Hartley basically hates Cisco before they even meet for outing him just by existing. And then they do meet and Hartley has to force himself to be crueler to Cisco than anyone else because he can just tell that if he lets him, Cisco will worm his way into his heart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> #TeamGetCiscoLaid2k15

Hartley was 12 when he realized that his parents weren’t normal. Other children’s parents said ‘I love you’ and brought them gifts. They hugged their sons and joked with them.

His parents didn’t do that. All they ever did was give instructions and scold him.

Hartley was 16 when he realized that the reason this happened was because of his soul mate.

›++‹

Because of the way he was raised, Hartley never thought that much of Cisco Ramon. His parents forbid him to say the name out loud to any of his friends. He wasn’t allowed to talk about it with anybody, not even with them.

The only reason he found out that Cisco Ramon was his soul mate was because of his 3rd grade English teacher, who used the soul mate bond and tattoos to explain a different concept.

He went home and asked his parents about it, but of course, they didn’t want to talk about it. He was grounded that evening.

When he was 17, he realized that he didn’t like girls. He knew before that, but it was only then when he really thought about it. Hartley didn’t think it had anything to do with Cisco Ramon. He didn’t like boys because of him, it had nothing to do with the name tattooed on his hip.

By the time he was 18, he knew he couldn’t live in his parent’s cage for much longer. He was happy when they threw him out.

It didn’t take long for Harrison Wells to take Hartley under his wing, and all was well.

›++‹

In the next years, Hartley learned how to be himself. How to be comfortable in bed with men, how to push people away, how to ignore his last name.

Everything went to hell when his eyes fell on a Star Wars t-shirt and a mess of black hair.

Hartley didn’t even blink when Wells said his name.

It was weird, hearing someone else say that name out loud. He never heard it before, said out loud.

He hoped, for a split second. He hoped for _something_ to happen. He held his breath and hoped.

Cisco didn’t even hesitate. There was no recognition in his eyes, no understanding, no excitement, nothing.

So Hartley did what he did best. He pushed people away. He pushed Cisco away. He was an asshole, acting like a spoiled brat towards Harrison, willing Cisco to hate him.

He gave Cisco a week.

Cisco said he wasn’t nice.

Hartley lied to himself, convincing himself that he didn’t care.

›++‹

For a week, Cisco tried.

Hartley wasn’t sure what exactly he was trying, but Cisco was civil. Nice.

He said hello in the morning and goodbye in the evening, he tried asking Hartley questions about Star Labs, he offered to bring him coffee and even asked him out to lunch once.

Hartley answered by being rude, his usual jerkish self. And he went home every night thinking that it was the right thing to do.

He didn’t need Cisco Ramon. He didn’t want Cisco Ramon.

So what if they were soul mates? Hartley wasn’t even sure of that, Cisco never said anything. It happened, rarely, but it did, a soul mate bond not being returned. So maybe, Cisco didn’t have his name tattooed. Maybe he had another name.

Hartley didn’t care. He didn’t want a soul mate.

Soul mates were complicated. Love was complicated, he knew as much. Hartley had better things to do than caring for someone. He didn’t have time to care for someone else’s needs, for dates and romance.

So he pushed Cisco away. As far away as he could.

›++‹

Still, he knew the exact moment Cisco quit trying, even before he said so.

‘It’s my 8th day here, at Star Labs’, Cisco came up to him one evening, grinning. ‘You gave me a week. So I exceeded your expectations. How about you let me buy you a drink?’

Hartley huffed. ‘I don’t associate with people like you.’

When he looked at Cisco, he saw him take a small step back. There was a flash of anger in his eyes, but then it disappeared completely, reassignment replacing it.

‘People like me?’, he asked, finally.

‘Who think they belong here.’, Hartley didn’t hesitate in explaining.

Cisco narrowed his eyes. ‘And you... know you belong here?’

‘Harrison trusts me’, Hartley said strongly. ‘He thinks you could turn out to be helpful.’

Cisco let out a long breath of air, never taking his eyes off Hartley. He didn’t like it, it made him feel weak, but he didn’t back down.

‘I’m gonna stop’, Cisco finally said. ‘There’s no use, is there?’

Hartley didn’t answer, but he didn’t really need to, because Cisco left without saying another word.

›++‹

Cisco became good friends with Caitlin and Ronnie. He laughed a lot, loudly, not caring that the people around him were working. He even made Wells laugh, and it wasn’t long before Hartley figured out that Harrison made up his mind about Cisco.

He made a place for himself in Star Labs. He got along with everybody and it was clear that he and Ronnie were very close. Hartley even heard Cisco tell Caitlin he loved her one day.

Hartley hated it.

He hated the way Cisco made him feel. They weren’t even talking, but he wanted to.

Some days, he wanted to ask Cisco about his family, and his childhood. Other times, he wanted to pin him to a wall. Sometimes, he wanted to know why he and Ronnie got along so well, other times he wanted to keep everybody away from Cisco.

Some days, he was jealous, others he was mad. Sometimes he was lonely, more often than not he was horny.

Hartley hated it.

He hated Cisco for making him feel like this.

›++‹

When Wells kicked him out, there were a lot of people in the halls, staring as security escorted him out.

Hartley only locked eyes with Cisco.

He couldn’t read the way the other man was looking at him. But he saw Caitlin putting a comforting hand on Cisco’s shoulder, and he sighed in response.

Hartley had no idea what that meant.

›++‹

After he recovered from the explosion, Hartley spent every day thinking about Cisco.

About how he had to pay, just as much as Wells did.

He tried. He fought the Flash, he let himself be captured, he bullied Cisco and Caitlin.

He convinced Cisco to let him out. He fought with him, getting bruises and giving as well as he got, ignoring the way Cisco’s body felt pressed against his.

He ran away, and fought the Flash again. And he spent the next months planning.

Revenge. On Wells.

And his team. Cisco included.

›++‹

The news had a live coverage of the black hole. Hartley saw Barry run straight into it.

Then, the camera panned down, and Hartley saw Caitlin crying, Ronnie hugging her, and Cisco holding her hand.

Wells wasn’t there. He didn’t know what that meant, but it was important.

Before he could think twice about it, Hartley gathered his gloves and ran. When he got there, the black whole wasn’t there anymore. He didn’t see Barry or his team, but he saw the city.

There was a blood bath. Everything was in chaos.

Cars turned upside down, some of them on fire. People screaming, bloodied and in pain.

Hartley could hear ambulances approaching, but there was a teenager close by, he couldn’t have been more than 15. There was a pipe sticking out of his thigh and he was screaming, crying out in pain.

He was by his side before he even realized it. The kid grabbed a hold of his hand, squeezing so tightly it hurt Hartley’s fingers.

‘It’s okay’, Hartley said. ‘You’re gonna be okay, there’s an ambulance on its way.’

The kid kept crying. Hartley vaguely remembered Caitlin talking about stopping the bleeding, so he tried to do that, pushing his palms around the pipe. The kid screamed even louder than before, so Hartley stopped.

Someone said his name, and when he looked up, Caitlin was gaping at him. Her hair was a mess and her clothes were dirty and askew.

‘What do I do?’, Hartley asked. ‘Do I take it out?’

Caitlin snapped out of it, quickly. ‘No, it’ll make it bleed worse. Tourniquet’.

She barely finished saying the word before Hartley was taking off his belt. As he put it around the boy’s leg, he screamed a lot, until he passed out, probably because of the pain. Harley found himself pushing back the boy’s hair, from his sweaty forehead. He kept doing it.

A minute later, the paramedics came, and Hartley reluctantly moved. Caitlin was still staring at him, a few feet away.

He went by her side and tried to put a hand on her shoulder, but she flinched back.

‘Is Barry dead?’, he asked, not beating around the bush.

‘I don’t know’, she shakily breathed out. ‘There was an… explosion, when the black hole closed. It threw me back. Ronnie and Cisco, I-‘

She was shaking hard, and when Hartley touched her this time, she didn’t flinch away.

‘Come on’, he said as softly as he could, rubbing her back. ‘Let’s go find your boys.’

Caitlin let herself be dragged by Hartley, and it didn’t take long for them to find Barry.

He was on the ground, clearly unconscious, and everybody else was sitting around him, Cisco, Ronnie, Dr Stein, and a man was holding back a woman, Hartley didn’t recognize either of them, but she was sobbing after Barry.

‘He’s alive’, Caitlin said with her fingers on Barry’s neck. ‘Barely. He needs a hospital.’

‘He can’t go to a hospital’, Hartley says, making everyone turn to stare at him. ‘As much as the people of this town love The Flash, they’re also stupid and uninformed. They might think he was responsible for it.’

Hartley could see that they all agreed with him, so he suggested going back to Star Labs. He helped Ronnie and Cisco carry Barry to the Cortex, and he watched silently as Caitlin worked on him.

Ronnie helped her, gathering whatever she needed. The man and woman Hartley didn’t know were in a corner, both of them crying, the woman quite hysterically. Stein was sitting close to them, but he wasn’t taking his eyes off Barry, and Cisco was as close to him as he could get without getting in Caitlin’s way. He looked terrified.

It wasn’t long, before Caitlin said that Barry will be alright. The woman pushed the man away and ran to Barry's bedside, and Ronnie barely had time to pull a chair that she collapsed in. Dr Stein excused himself, saying he needed to check on his wife, and Caitlin quickly turned into Ronnie’s arms, crying softly.

When Hartley’s eyes fell on Cisco, he was already watching him.

‘Are you hurt?’, he whispered, and it took a while for Hartley to understand why he would ask that. He was covered in blood.

‘It’s not mine’, he managed to say, and his voice sounded loud in the Cortex.

Cisco nodded a few times, then turned around and walked away. ‘I’ll find you some clean clothes’, he said, and Hartley only stopped to take off his gloves, a gesture Cisco was clearly surprised by, but didn’t comment on.

›++‹

He should have been smarter. But Hartley was exhausted, and loopy. So he went into the locker rooms and took a shower without waiting for Cisco to bring him clothes.

So when he stepped out of the shower, with just a towel around his waist, and Cisco was waiting for him in the locker room, his tattoo was visible.

On his right hip bone, the words Cisco Ramon were written. In black ink, and a simple, yet harsh font. Underneath it, in light blue ink, there was a segment of what Hartley always thought were sound waves.

Cisco didn’t seem surprised. He stared, of course, but he didn’t seem surprised. He didn’t say anything either, he just pointed to a set of clothes and closed his eyes.

Hartley quickly changed, into a Star Labs pair of sweatpants and what was clearly one of Cisco’s shirts, because it had different Pokemons on it.

His heart was beating rapidly in his chest, Hartley realized, and he really wished that it stopped. But it didn’t.

Hartley sat down on the bench next to Cisco, trying to gather his thoughts.

‘You’re not going to ask about it?’, is what he settled on asking.

‘Not now’, Cisco sighed.

Surprisingly, Hartley agreed with him.

‘Where’s Wells?’, he asked after a few more silent moments.

It took a while, for Cisco to explain. About the Reverse Flash, about Eobard Thawne, the time machine and Eddie. By the end of it, Hartley’s head was spinning, his fists were clenched so tight his knuckles were white, and he felt angry and disappointed.

‘I was supposed to kill him’, he finally said. ‘I’ve been planning it for months.’

‘Yeah, well’, Cisco shrugged, but didn’t continue for a while.

When he spoke again, he didn’t look at Hartley, instead staring at his hands.

‘Were you supposed to kill us, too?’, he whispered, and Hartley nodded.

‘Are you still planning on doing that?’, Cisco’s voice was harsher, and he was looking at him now.

‘No’, Hartley breathed out. ‘It was all Wells. You didn’t…’ He lost that train of thought, so he shook his head before looking at Cisco. ‘What am I going to do now?’

‘I don’t even know what I’m going to do now, man’, he breathed out. ‘So, sorry, can’t help you there.’

Neither of them moved for a long time, and they didn’t say anything either. But when Caitlin’s voice bloomed over the intercom, saying that Barry was awake, they both rushed to their feet.

Cisco stopped Hartley, grabbing a hold of his wrist.

He had a harsh look in his eyes, but it wasn’t anger. Hartley couldn’t read that look, and he hated not knowing.

Cisco didn’t say anything, he just wordlessly pushed the collar of his t-shirt, low enough that Hartley could see his collarbone. And the tattoo on it.

It was exactly like his, the blue sound waves, and Hartley Rathaway written in big black letters.

Hartley felt relieved. Cisco turned around and left without any other word, and he followed.

›++‹

Barry felt guilty, that much was clear. He explained what happened, what he saw, how he closed the black hole. Hartley didn’t understand half of it.

‘I can’t tell you’, Barry said at one point. ‘The future I saw. Last time I messed with time, Cisco and Dante nearly died.’

But he was looking at Caitlin as he spoke, and it was clear that Harley was the only one who didn’t know what he was talking about.

‘The city sustained a lot of damage’, Caitlin said, fingers moving over the keyboard. ‘And casualties.’

‘We have to help’, Barry all but begged.

‘You need to rest’, the unknown man said, and it was only now that Hartley noticed that he was a cop.

‘We all do’, Caitlin agreed. ‘Let’s go home. We’ll figure it out tomorrow.’

‘What about Eddie?’, the woman, that Hartley figured was the cop’s daughter asked.

‘We don’t even have a body.’, she went on, voice breaking, Barry quickly hugging her.

‘I can’t think’, Caitlin said. ‘Tomorrow. We’ll figure everything out tomorrow.’

‘What are you even doing here?’, Ronnie said, harshly, coming to stand in front of Hartley.

He didn’t have an answer, so he shrugged. Ronnie looked furious, and there was fire in his eyes. Literally, Hartley could see flames.

‘He helped a boy’, Caitlin said slowly, ‘that was bleeding out. And he helped me find you.’

‘I’m pretty sure you have bigger fish to fry than my evilness.’, Hartley rolled his eyes. ‘But, as you said’, he managed to smile, sincerely, at Caitlin, ‘tomorrow.’

He turned around, wanting to leave without saying another word, but Cisco’s voice stopped him.

‘You’re not taking the gloves?’

Hartley looked at him, and he could clearly see that Cisco was thinking, hard, about something.

‘I don’t need them anymore’, was all Hartley said before leaving.

›++‹

He woke up to Cisco banging on his front door. He barely waited for Hartley to open it before stepping inside the apartment. He had two Starbucks cups in his hand and he wordlessly gave one to Hartley, before sitting on the couch and watching him closely.

Hartley was still wearing the Pokemon shirt, and no pants.

‘What are you doing here?’, he managed to say, sitting on the coffee table, not too close to Cisco.

‘There’s a lot of work to do’, he started by saying. ‘Joe managed to-‘

‘Who’s Joe?’, Hartley interrupted, frowning.

‘The… detective from yesterday’, Cisco shook his head. ‘He’s Barry’s foster dad. He explained to the cops what happened, so the Flash is off the hook. But the city sustained a lot of damage, and it needs the Flash right now.’ He paused for a blink. ‘And the Flash needs us.’

‘That doesn’t answer my question.’, Hartley took a long swing from his coffee, surprised to find that it was just the way he liked it.

Cisco just looked at him for a few seconds, and he slouched back on the couch before he spoke.

‘I think you wanna help.’

Hartley figured as much. Still, hearing someone say it, it made it real.

‘God help me, I do’, he breathed out, highly aggravated, making Cisco chuckle.

After he managed to calm himself down, Cisco leaned forward, his elbows on his knees, making Hartley look him in the eyes.

‘Can we trust you?’, he asked slowly, voice barely above a whisper.

‘Yeah’, Hartley found himself nodding.

‘Good’, Cisco didn’t miss a beat. ‘Will you still be an ass?’

‘Definitely’, he smirked. ‘But I’ll help nontheless.’

‘Good enough’, Cisco snorted. ‘Now go get dressed, I’ll drive you.’

Hartley got up and headed towards the bedroom, but Cisco’s voice stopped him.

‘I’m going to need that t-shirt back.’ It was said in a playful manner, and it scared Hartley, the way his heart flipped.

‘Eventually’, he said, all but running out of there.

›++‹

It was weird, coming back to work at Star Labs, especially how it was now.

Barry and Cisco, Caitlin and Ronnie. Joe and Iris were there often.

Hartley met Felicity, too, even though they didn’t tell him who the Arrow was.

Nobody trusted him.

He understood it, and he acted like he didn’t care. But he also tried his best not to screw up.

And after he gave Cisco the schematics to his gloves, the whole team seemed to loosen up around him.

Then, the bickering started. Mostly with Cisco, and at first, everyone thought they were back to their usual hatred, but it wasn’t like that. It was fun, harmful, playful.

It felt good. He was still the odd one out, but for the first time in a long while, Hartley felt like he belonged.

›++‹

Cisco kept asking for his Pokemon t-shirt. Hartley acted like he didn't hear him.

After a while, Cisco just stopped asking.

›++‹

The first time Hartley got hurt while helping the Flash, he got a knife cut on his ribs. Caitlin hesitated with her hands over his shirt, scissors close by. She spared a look at Cisco, then ordered everybody out of the lab.

‘You know’, Hartley breathed out, making Caitlin nod. After she cut off his shirt, her fingers quickly ran over his tattoo, but then she shook herself and started cleaning the wound.

‘Why didn’t you say anything?’

‘What could I have said?’, Caitlin didn’t stop her fingers.

‘I though you would try to convince me to go for it.’

For some reason, that made her laugh.

‘You’re both stubborn, Hartley’, she was still smiling. ‘You don’t need a third party meddling, you make it complicated enough as it is. Plus, I know Cisco. You _could_ try, but you’d never have your way if Cisco wouldn’t want it.’

Hartley didn’t say anything.

‘Not to say he doesn’t want to’, Caitlin added after a beat. ‘But neither of you are in the position to start something serious right now.’

‘You’re scary sometimes’, Hartley mumbled, the painkillers kicking in.

He heard Caitlin chuckling before he passed out.

›++‹

Hartley knew she was right.

He wanted Cisco, and he cared about him, somewhat, but that wasn’t enough. Not right now.

So Hartley decided he will do ask Caitlin said, he will wait. For the right moment.

›++‹

In the end, Hartley has no idea if the right moment ever came.

Because two months later, Caitlin was held up by gunpoint, and the asshole looked ready to shoot. Hartley was the first one to react, crashing into him, and fighting hard until the guy was a bloody mess on the ground.

‘You saved my life’, Caitlin breathed out, shakily, and Hartley opened his mouth to say something, but he couldn’t, because Cisco was kissing him.

Hard. Desperately. Whimpering against Hartley’s lips, with his hands digging bruises into his shoulders, not letting him push away.

Not that Hartley would. He didn’t hesitate long, until he wrapped his hands around Cisco’s waist and responded eagerly to the kiss.

He has no idea how long they stood there kissing, but he does know that in time, it grew softer. Not as desperate, but still very hot.

Cisco had his fingers pushed under Hartley’s collar, and they felt very cool to the touch. Cisco wasn’t whimpering anymore, but he was humming, seemingly in content, and it made Hartley bite on his lower lip, just to make him stop.

When they finally detached themselves, Cisco didn’t go too far away, one hand still clinging to Hartley's shoulder. He was breathing heavily and blinking rapidly, a glazed look in his eyes.

‘Maybe I shouldn’t have done that’, Cisco whispered.

‘Probably.’, Hartley had to agree.

‘Are you mad?’

‘Not one bit.’

They both chuckled at that, and Cisco gave him another short kiss, just a peck on the lips, before turning around and dealing with a very shocked Caitlin.

Hartley couldn’t stop grinning.


	8. We're having fun, right, babe?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> [battlships](http://battlships.tumblr.com/) gave me a longass prompt, which I didn't fully respect, but here are the spark notes: Hartley still gets invited to all those stuffy rich people events; Cisco goes with him; Hartley's parents approach him saying that he shouldn’t be there; Cisco is basically like “fuck you, we’re gonna go dance”; they both laugh because they had fun but they know they’ll never be invited back until they see the paper and realize that a picture of them dancing wound up on the front page with an article wondering if the social elite were starting to come around to 21st century views; so they BOTH get invites from then on as the token gay couple and they do go but Hartley becomes really outspoken about how ridiculous it all is; bonus points if there are also snide comments about Cisco being hispanic; Hartley getting more angry on Cisco’s behalf than his own; 
> 
> **So, basically, Hartmon fic. Fake dating trope of some sort. 4000 words of it. Enjoy.**

It’s been a couple of months since Hartley came to Team Flash, with his metaphorical tail between his legs. He has been spending his time with the Rogues, but that’s gone now. He explains, about Palmer and Sara and Rip Hunter and of course, they’re all reluctant to just accept Hartley Rathaway as part of the team.

But, slowly but surely, Hartley won their trust. He fought side by side with them, he helped save people, he _helped_.

He was still insufferable, Cisco thought. Cocky, rude, an asshole as always. But now, they all knew it was just a default setting. Now, if Hartley insulted them, they laughed.

They still weren’t friends, not really. Barry, Cisco and Caitlin went out at least once a week, and even though they always asked, Hartley usually refused. But in the past month, he came twice, so that was that.

It was a work in progress.

But it was clear that neither of them minded it.

≡

‘That’s a great idea and all’, Caitlin drawled out, ‘but how are we supposed to get inside the mayor’s Christmas Party?’

The metahuman they were after this week was part of the mayor’s security staff, and he used this to his advantage. This, and the fact that he could shoot lightning out of his hands.

‘That’s the easy part’, Hartley said, making everybody turn to look at him.

‘What?’, he scoffed. ‘I have an invitation.’

Cisco wasn’t the only one who was in shock.

‘Come on’, Hartley said, somewhat angrily, ‘I know I don’t like to talk about it, but you guys keep forgetting my last name.’

‘Right’, Caitlin said, diplomatically.

Hartley turned to her. ‘So how about it, Miss Snow?’, he smiled, overly flirtatious. ‘Would you be my date for the evening?’

Caitlin didn’t even bat an eye.

‘You’re gay, Hartley’, she said. ‘Plus, I wouldn’t be much help against a meta human.’

‘That’s why I should go’, Barry said, nodding seriously.

‘Actually’, Hartley tilted his head. ‘I should take Cisco.’

‘Why?’, Cisco asked, dreading the answer.

‘Judging by the way Barry came out unconscious from the fight with this particular meta human’, Barry pouted at this, but it was true, ‘it’s clear that speed won’t do’, Hartley went on. ‘But if we work together, we might be able to take him.’

‘Uhhh-‘, Caitlin said, highly dubious. Cisco could relate.

‘Come on’, Hartley rolled his eyes. ‘Cisco can shake things up, confusing the bastard, and I can use my gloves to give him a killer headache. Hopefully, he’ll be unconscious once we’re done with him. Then, Barry can break in and flash the meta human back here.’

‘I’ll be waiting’, Barry glared at Hartley. ‘Any sign of trouble, you call.’

‘Of course’, Hartley said, highly sarcastic. Then, he turned to Cisco, raising an eyebrow and clearly checking him out.

‘You got a suit?’

Cisco scoffed. ‘Of course I have a suit.’

‘I have standards, you know’, Hartley leered.

‘I’ll text you a picture’, Cisco mumbled under his breath, turning around and resisting the urge to shoot himself in the leg.

≡

Barry, bless his soul, seemed to be more nervous than Cisco.

‘Are you sure you’re okay with it? Because, I mean, some people know who you are’, he stammered, ‘And if you show up with Hartley at a party, they’re going to … assume things. And there’s going to be photographers there, and you don’t know where those pictures will end up, and I mean… I just don’t want to-‘

‘Barry’, Cisco said, oddly fond. ‘I can’t believe you haven’t figured it out yet.’

Of course, Barry frowned at that. ‘Figure out what?’

‘I’m bi’, Cisco grinned, delighted in seeing Barry’s jaw drop, and his eyes growing wide, and the slight blush coloring the tip of his ears.

Then, surprisingly enough, Barry hugged him. Cisco just went with it.

Nothing else was said on the matter.

≡

Caitlin insisted on helping Cisco get ready for the event.

She didn’t actually get to do anything, except for nodding approvingly at everything.

And, truth be told, Cisco did look hella nice in a suit.

Stark black, perfectly fitted on his body. With a dark gray shirt, a black tie and a light blue handkerchief. Cisco slicked his hair back, in a low pony tail, and even put on cologne.

Caitlin was impressed. She was looking a bit flustered, taking pictures of him and furiously texting someone. He didn’t know who, but Cisco couldn’t help but grin.

If he’s being honest, he felt a strong flash of want when he saw Hartley. Truth be told, Cisco has always been a bit attracted to Hartley, but he always pushed that down. But now, Hartley looked absolutely delicious.

He was wearing a dark gray suit, that sort of matched Cisco’s shirt. A lighter gray shirt, a dark blue tie and yeah, Cisco had to take a deep breath.

‘You both look amazing’, Caitlin said, still obviously flustered.

Cisco and Hartley both raised an eyebrow at her.

‘Shut up’, she said, blushing furiously. ‘I’m surrounded by gorgeous superheroes on a daily basis, a girl gets frustrated.’

Hartley turned to Cisco. ‘We gotta find her a boyfriend.’

Cisco nodded, ignoring Caitlin’s huffing.

≡

Cisco felt very awkward when they got to the party. They had to sit in front of a white wall, while a photographer took their picture. Cisco smiled, stiffly sitting straight and ignoring how hot Hartley’s hand felt on his waist.

He must have sensed this, because the first thing Hartley did was get them both a glass of champaign. Cisco felt marginally better.

For about ten minutes, until he felt Hartley going stiff by his side, and looking around, Cisco saw Hartley’s parents marching up towards them.

‘What are you doing here?’, his father angrily said.

‘I have an invitation’, Hartley said, easily. ‘It comes with the privilege of having your last name.’

‘You never used that privilege before’, his father pointed out, and Cisco wanted to sink into the floor.

‘I’m turning a new leaf’, Harley grinned, even if his fists were clenched.

‘You’re embarrassing us’, his mother finally spoke, equally angry as his father.

‘Not really’, Hartley told her. ‘You disowned me a while back, remember? I have no relation to you anymore. Except the last name. I was thinking about changing it, you know, but it does have it’s perks, doesn’t it?’, he asked that toward Cisco and what could he do, really?

He wanted to punch them in the face, maybe make their hearts vibrate till the point of no return, but he couldn’t do that. The anger surprised Cisco, a bit, so he tried to tone it down.

They were supposed to be on a date, so he settled on putting his hand on Hartley’s arm and squeezing it. Hartley’s reaction was to smile at him, and it seemed genuine. Cisco might have blushed.

Which wasn’t really good, considering all the Rathaways’ were looking at him now.

‘Despicable’, Hartley’s father all but spit on them. ‘Both of you. You’re a disgrace.’

‘You should leave’, his wife added.

‘Not happening’, Hartley said, seemingly unperturbed, turning to Cisco. ‘We’re having fun, right, babe?’

Cisco bit back the snappy retort. ‘We should dance.’

That wasn’t what he wanted to say, but it was what came out. Hartley was clearly surprised by this, but Cisco pushed on. He grabbed Hartley’s hand and glared at his parents.

‘Excuse us, Mr and Ms Rathaway. As my date said, we’re here to have fun, not plan the murder of two people who are lousy excuses of human beings.’

He dragged Hartley out of there, straight onto the dancing floor. Cisco was still seething angrily when Hartley wrapped his hands around his waist. It felt a bit weird, dancing with Hartley, pressed together in the middle of the crowded dancing floor in the mayor’s house.

Cisco’s hands were on Hartley’s shoulders, and their chests were pressed together, Hartley taking the lead, somewhat, and moving them in sync with the soft song that was playing.

When the song ended, they kept dancing.

Hartley moved one of his hands, from Cisco’s lower back, up until it sat on the base of his neck, under his pony tail. His hand was very hot against Cisco’s skin, and he doesn’t know how well he suppressed a shiver.  

‘You’re shaking’, Hartley said right in Cisco’s ear.

‘I am aware of that.’, he gritted out.

‘Why are you shaking?’, Hartley insisted, oddly soft.

‘Cause I want to kill your parents’.

Hartley snorted at that, and moved until he could press his cheek against Cisco’s shoulder.

‘I appreciate it’, he said, ‘but I’m over it, really.’

‘I’m not’, Cisco mumbled.

Hartley huffed, moving the hand that was still on his back lower, until it was sitting comfortably, on his ass. Cisco didn’t even flinch, but he did narrow his eyes, even if Hartley couldn’t really see it.

‘Don’t get emotional on me, Ciscito’, he leered. ‘We’ve got a job to do.’

‘And on that note’, Caitlin’s voice startled them both, they forgot they had ear pieces on, ‘our meta human just sneaked off to … uh…’, they heard typing. ‘To the office. West wing, second door to the left.’

‘Okay’, Hartley said, moving away.

‘Wait a bit, though’, Caitlin suggested. ‘He’ll probably target the mayor’s safe. Best to catch him in the act.’

That… didn’t sound that smart to Cisco, but he silently danced with Hartley for two more songs.

≡

They caught the meta human. It was surprisingly easy.

So easy, that they could afford staying at the party a while longer. Just to piss off Hartley’s parents, Cisco argued, but in fact, he was enjoying himself.

At the end of the night, they stole a bunch of cupcakes before they left the mayor’s mansion, and they shared them with Barry and Caitlin back at Star Labs.

Once he got home, Cisco barely managed to take off his clothes, falling asleep in his boxers, utterly exhausted.

≡

Caitlin and Hartley were huddled out around a monitor when Cisco got into work the next morning, and Barry was pacing right next to them.

‘What’s wrong?’, Cisco asked, making Caitlin yelp. She also quickly turned off the monitor.

Hartley turned to look at him, and he was angry.

‘Have you checked the internet this morning?’

‘No’, Cisco frowned. ‘Why?’

‘Because you have about 20.000 twitter followers now’, Caitlin said, slowly.

Cisco just… blinked. ‘Why?’

He didn’t understand.

Hartley sighed and pushed Caitlin’s chair away from the desk, opening the monitor back up and showing Cisco the EW website.

Where a picture of him and Hartley from last night was posted.

It was a nice picture, Cisco absently thought. They were by the food table, after they caught the meta human. That would explain the idiotic grins on their faces. Cisco had his hands full of a massive cupcake, and Hartley’s hand was around Cisco’s shoulders, their bodies pressed together.

The title of the article was ‘Is Central City finally entering the 21st century?’

Cisco skimmed the article. It started by explaining who Hartley was, and they quickly went over the whole story with his parents disowning him because he was gay. They didn’t say much about Cisco, but they called him a ‘Hispanic cutie’, and mentioned that he was currently employed at Star Labs.

The article went on with different short interviews of the people that were at the party. They all said mostly the same thing, that Hartley and Cisco were cute and that they stole the party. That everybody was watching them dancing (there was a picture here), that it was sweet and so powerful, to see this young couple, to know what Hartley has been through, and to just see them enjoying themselves, just the two of them, ignoring the rest of the world.

Then, the journalist went into a bit of a rant, explaining how important they were for the Central City elite. While everybody always said that they were open minded to different sexualities, most celebrities still didn’t want to come out. He said that Hartley and Cisco were very important, because they were the first ones, they were brave enough to appear, publicly, and give a big Fuck You to everybody else.

After he finished reading, Cisco was aware that everybody was looking at him, waiting for a reaction.

What reaction should Cisco have? He had no idea.

‘It’s not all’, Caitlin said, softly. ‘This is one of the good ones.’

‘There’s bad ones?’, Hartley said before Cisco managed to open his mouth.

Caitlin nodded, clearly sad. ‘Not everyone agrees with the… public displays.’

‘We didn’t even kiss, for god’s sake’, Hartley growled. ‘We just danced.’

‘There was a lot of touching’, Cisco pointed out, making Hartley glare at him.

‘And some people’, Caitlin went on, even slower, not meeting Cisco’s eyes, ‘don’t approve of… Cisco’s ethnicity.’

Hartley visibly got red at that. He was angry, but Cisco wasn’t, not really.

‘That’s not the first time, and it won’t be the last.’

‘This is ridiculous!’, Hartley growled.

‘Yeah it is’, Cisco snorted, feeling calmer than he would have thought he would. ‘It’s the 21st century, gay marriage is legal, the Flash is real, we sent people to the moon, there’s a cure for the plague and… people still have a problem with two dudes having sex, and one of them being an immigrant. It’s idiotic.’

Hartley opened his mouth to say something, but Cisco didn’t let him.

‘And there’s not much we can do about it.’

‘This helped, though’, Barry finally said something, making them turn to look at him. ‘Captain Singh texted me last night’, he smiled at Cisco and Hartley. ‘Said that he and his husband were very happy they weren’t the only… gay ones at the party.’

Cisco frowned. ‘I didn’t see them.’

Barry shrugged. ‘They didn’t want to interrupt, apparently.’

Cisco scoffed at that. ‘Look’, he shook his head. ‘This is nothing, it’s fine.’

Hartley looked like he was going to say something again, so Cisco stopped him by putting a hand on his shoulder.

‘We have to be careful, though. Because this whole secret identity thing we have going on, it ain’t going to work well with us being…’, he scrunched up his nose, ‘celebrities.’

‘That’s true’, Caitlin agreed. ‘Maybe we should work on your masks. They don’t conceal your faces very well.’

Cisco grinned at her, and quickly got to work.

≡

A week later, he was at Jitters in the morning, getting some breakfast and coffee for everyone. A cute young woman approached him, and she wanted to ask Cisco a couple of questions.

He didn’t get it.

But then, she pulled out her phone and started recording the conversation, and the first question she asked was how long has hebeen dating Hartley and if he has any issues with the fact that his boyfriend is a lot more well known that him.

Cisco got angry, and he got angry fast. ‘That’s not any of your business, and I’m not answering any of your questions.’

‘Why not?’, the woman frowned. ‘It’s publicity.’

‘I don’t fucking need publicity’, he rolled his eyes. ‘I need coffee.’

He was out of there before she got to say anything more. He debated about it, but in the end he did tell Hartley.

‘I’m sorry’, he sighed.

‘It’s fine’, Cisco shrugged. ‘I just thought I’d warn you.’

‘I’ll think of something’, was the only response he gave, surprisingly strong.

≡

‘So I have two tickets to that new zombie movie you’ve been raving about. To the premiere’, Hartley tells Cisco a week later. ‘It’s a red carpet.’

‘You… wanna take me?’, Cisco asked, incredulously.

‘You said we can’t do much’, Hartley shrugged. ‘But we can do something.’

‘Pretend to date?’, Cisco raised an eyebrow.

‘I don’t see anybody else lining up for us’, Hartley sarcastically snapped, ‘so it’s not like it’ll ruin your love life.’

Cisco wanted to say no. But Hartley was right. And he really wanted to see the movie.

‘I’m gonna need a new suit’, is what he said, making Hartley grin, and drag him to a shop right then.

≡

Going on the red carpet was hell, Cisco thought.

He looked good in his suit, he felt kind of gorgeous if he’s being honest, Hartley was a comforting presence by his side, but all the camera flashes and the yelling fans and the reporters were absolute hell.

Thankfully, they didn’t stop to give an interview, no matter how much the reporters begged.

And Cisco passed two feet away from Chris Evans, so that was that. The movie was amazing, of course it was, and he didn’t even mind Hartley grabbing his hand as they got out of the movie theater.

Of course, later that night, their names were trending and the opinions were, once again, split.

≡

They got invited to the Central City Police Department New Year’s party. They both would have gone either way, Barry said he’d get them tickets, but they got a formal invitation, with Captain Singh’s signature.

Cisco promised himself that he would have fun. And he did.

He munched on good food, drank glass after glass of good beer, and small talked with a lot of people.

He danced with Caitlin first, and they spent the time giggling and laughing and it was good. Then Barry cut in, and Cisco was more than willing to step back and let them dance.

Hartley was by his side, then, and didn’t say anything, as much as manhandled Cisco back into a dancing position. He huffed, but went along with it.

‘You don’t mind, do you?’, Hartley asked halfway through the song. ‘You’d tell me if you minded.’

‘Sure’, Cisco shrugged. ‘It’s just dancing.’

‘That’s not what I mean’, Hartley threw him a pointed look.

Cisco thought about it. Really thought about it.

What they were doing, it didn’t seem important, not really. But the more articles about himself Cisco read, the more important it felt. They were making a difference, in the Central City celebrity circle, at least. And while he hated the camera flashes, and the nosy reporters, he didn’t mind dancing with Hartley or holding his hand.

And he really didn’t mind all the messages he received on a daily basis, young boys and girls congratulating him on his courage, and letting him know that they’re drawing strength for it.

If spending time with Hartley was all he needed to do, well, they already worked together. It wasn’t bad. Not at all.

‘We haven’t actually been on a date’, Cisco found himself saying, making Hartley frown. ‘We’re dating, right? And we haven’t been on a proper date.’

‘You…’, Hartley was still frowning, ‘You want me to take you out on a date.’

Cisco shook his head. ‘Neah, I want to take you out on a date. For starters.’

‘For real? Or for show?’, Hartley asked, very slowly. Cisco didn’t really know how to answer that.

‘I mean’, he stammered out, ‘my twitter followers keep asking me about it, how you are on dates. I don’t know how to answer them, do I?’

‘That wasn’t an answer’, Hartley pointed out.

‘It’s the only one I have’, Cisco admitted, and Hartley seemed to accept this.

≡

When midnight came around, Cisco got a massive hug from Barry, a kiss on a cheek from Caitlin, and a kiss on the other cheek from Hartley.

It was nice.

≡

It took a while, but Cisco took Hartley to the farmer’s market on a Sunday morning. Reluctantly.

He grumbled all through it, but Cisco mostly ignored him, focusing on buying things, and thinking about what he’ll cook later. He wordlessly drove Hartley back to his apartment, and started cooking them lunch. It wasn’t anything too fancy, just something his mother always used to cook when he was little.

Cisco spent the rest of the morning in the kitchen, while Hartley snooped around his apartment. He didn’t mind, and he answered every weird question Hartley asked, about the various knick-knacks Cisco kept in his apartment.

They ate in the living room, sitting side by side on the couch, watching SNL reruns, comfortably talking about nothing important. They had coffee and cookies, after, and suddenly, Hartley turned to look at him with a very serious expression.

‘Do you parents know?’

Cisco blinked. ‘About what?’

‘About you being bi.’

‘Oh, yeah’, Cisco waved him off. ‘Just another one in the long lists of things I disappointed by parents with.’

Hartley frowned. ‘You’re a disappointment?’

‘It’s a long story’, it was what Cisco settled on saying.

‘You could tell me, you know’, Hartley snapped, suddenly angry. ‘You know about my parents, and we have been dating’, he used finger quotes, ‘for a month or so.’

‘Five weeks, actually’, Cisco smirked, making Hartley glare.

‘Fine’, Cisco sighed, and started talking. Briefly, but he did tell him everything.

‘Thank you’, Hartley said at the end of it. ‘Now, are there more cookies?’

≡

Next weekend, Hartley took Cisco out for a nice, expensive dinner. He still enjoyed himself, in the darkly lit restaurant, with the menu written all in French.

Hartley ordered for him, but Cisco didn’t mind, the food was hella good.

Afterwards, Hartley drove them to a hole in the wall froyo place, and Cisco ate a bucket as big of his head.

He kept grinning throughout the night, and Hartley kept smiling, so it was nice.

≡

They kept getting all sorts of invitations, to various events. Every now and then, they’d go to a party of a charity gala or something. If they had the time, if there wasn’t a meta human wrecking havoc and if there wasn’t any impending apocalypse threatening Central City.

Dancing with Hartley felt completely normal by now. And their fingers were intertwined more often than not.

≡

The new barista at Jitters asked him out. She was cute, but Cisco wasn’t single.

He didn’t even hesitate in saying that.

≡

When Hartley kisses him, it’s not for show. There are no cameras around, there’s nobody else around.

It’s late at night, and they worked their butts off the past three days, fighting a particularly nasty meta human. They’re at Cisco’s apartment, sprawled on the couch, marathoning True Detective to get their mind off things, when Hartley not so subtly stretches, tangles his fingers into Cisco’s hair, gently tugs on it until Cisco turns his head, and kisses him, very softly on the lips.

Hartley is being oddly gentle, and Cisco feels his hesitance. It just makes him grin. And it makes him move, fisting his hand into the front of Hartley’s tshirt, and pulling him closer.

They kiss for a long time, until Cisco’s lips are sore, he gets a crick in his neck, and his skin feels on fire.

‘That was surprising’, Hartley says, not moving too far away.

‘Was it really?’, Cisco smirks, shaking his head.

‘Yeah’, Hartley sighs, then shakes his head. ‘Surprise me again.’

And Cisco does, by pushing Hartley down into the couch, and straddling him quickly.

≡

They get to work together in the morning holding hands, both of them with hickies on display, Hartley wearing yesterday’s jeans and a tshirt that belongs to Cisco.

Caitlin takes one look at them and tells them they should take the day off. But she winks at them, so it’s all good.

≡

Hartley is a very good boyfriend, Cisco can’t help but think.

He buys Cisco a lot of chocolate and coffee, he holds his hand when they’re walking down the street, he kisses him good morning and good night and always makes the bed before they leave, even if they spend the night at Cisco’s place.

He takes Cisco out on dates, easily accepts every date idea Cisco has, he keeps his arm around Cisco’s shoulder when they’re out drinking with Barry and Caitlin, and when they share a shower, Hartley always washes Cisco’s hair.

Hartley is also very protective of Cisco. Always making sure he’s alright when they’re at an event and there’s cameras around, throwing snappy responses at reporters who get even slightly rude with their questions, always trying to shield him from whatever meta human they’re fighting, even if he knows that Cisco can take perfectly good care of himself.

It’s sweet. Hartley is sweet.

He’s still an asshole, most of the time. But he’s Cisco’s boyfriend, and he likes it.


	9. vibes and quakes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happens when Shield barges into the Cortex.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I posted a couple of Agents of Shield crossovers in my olicity collection, and a lot of people requested a Flash crossover. So here it is.  
> Little bit of FitzSimmons ahead. And there's no doubt in my mind that Felicity and Fitz are bros, I keep going back to it.

They were back at the lab, exhausted after having dealt with a metahuman, which was now safely unconscious in the pipeline.

Felicity, who came down to Central City to help them do maintenance on their system, was in the servers room, and Barry and Cisco had just changed out of their suits, ready to get a full physical, that Caitlin insisted on after every mission.

It was then when they barged in.

Men in tactical gear, with weird looking guns pointed straight at them. And, up front and centered, two women wearing fancier tactical suits, and a step behind them, another woman and a man wearing… plaid shirts and jumpers.

Barry knew he could take them all out, but one shared looked with Caitlin and Cisco stopped him from doing so.

‘We’re not here to hurt you’, the older woman in tactical suit said, pointedly lowering the gun she had trained at Barry.

‘We’re with Shield’, the younger woman said, taking a step forward.

‘I thought Shield went boom alongside Hydra’, Cisco said.

‘Not exactly’, the same woman said. ‘Shield still exists, trying to protect the people of Earth. Just like you’ve been doing’, she turned to look at Barry. ‘We know you’re the Flash and we just want to talk.’

‘I find that hard to believe’, Caitlin scoffed.

‘We have a list of enhanced people’, the woman in the jumper said, in an English accent. ‘We just want to talk –‘

‘Wait!’, Cisco said, pointedly. ‘You have a list of people affected by the particle accelerator? Cause let me tell you, we could’ve used that ages ago.’

The people from Shield shared a look, but once again, it was the English woman that talked.

‘The particle accelerator gave you your power?’

Barry nodded. ‘You didn’t know that?’

‘Then’, Cisco frowned, ‘what sort of enhanced people are on your list?’

Once again, the Shield people shared a look. Then, the older woman in tactical gear signaled for the rest of the people to leave, leaving only the four of them, the three women and the guy in the jumper.

‘That seems reckless’, Cisco raised an eyebrow.

‘You won’t hurt us’, the English woman said. ‘You’re far too curious to find out what we know.’

‘Plus’, the younger woman in tactical gear grinned, ‘we can protect ourselves.’

Then, she fisted her right hand and the whole Cortex started shaking.

Of course, Barry and Caitlin quickly turned to Cisco, yelling at him to stop.

‘I’m not doing this!’, he yelled right back, and the shaking stopped.

The people from Shield were staring at him. Cisco slowly turned to the young woman.

‘You did that?’

She nodded.

‘How?’, Cisco took a step forward, eyes wide and excited. ‘Can you see vibrations? Or feel them? Or can you just move things, make them vibe?’

The woman blinked a few times. ‘Everything around us has a certain vibration-‘

‘I know’, Cisco interrupted quickly, waving his hand impatiently. ‘And?’

‘And I can hear them. And manipulate them.’

‘This is incredible!’, Cisco yelped after a beat, turning to look at Caitlin and Barry. ‘Two Vibes!’

‘We call her Quake’, the guy in the jumper said, in a thick Scottish accent.

‘I like it’, Cisco grinned after a beat. ‘I’m Vibe’, he punctuated the statement by making the suit Quake was wearing vibrate on her. She chuckled, a look of excitement passing her face.

‘How?’, she asked.

‘Particle accelerator explosion’, Cisco tilted his head, speaking rapidly. ‘Released dark matter into the world. Certain people have been affected by it, in various matters, usually connected with their environment at the moment, giving them powers. We call them metahumans. Were you… in Central City when the explosion happened?’

She slowly shook her head. ‘No, I uh… I got transformed in an ancient old ritual called terrigenesis, in an ancient temple planted on Earth by an alien race called the Kree.’

Everybody was rendered silent at that. Of course, that’s when Felicity came in. With her head in her tablet, talking away about the upgrades she did to the serves. She didn’t seem to notice there were four strangers in the Cortex.

She didn’t even lift her eyes from the tablet, not even when Barry pointedly said her name.

But then, as she passed the guy from Shield, he said her name, somewhat incredulously.

Felicity stopped dead in her tracks, slowly turning to look at him.

Then, she yelped, throwing her tablet behind her.

Barry flashed and caught it, and when he looked up, Felicity had the Scottish man wrapped in a tight hug. After a few seconds, she pulled away and slapped him, hard.

His coworkers tensed at that, and the English woman even took a step forward.

‘Fitz!’, Felicity said, sternly. ‘What the frack, I thought you were dead!’

‘Why did you think I was dead?’, the man frowned, rubbing his cheek.

‘Because you worked for Shield and Hydra took it down’, Felicity yelled.

‘How did you know I worked for Shield?’, the Scot said in a high pitched voice.

‘You fell off the grid straight after college, after a pair of weird guys in suits talked to you in your dorm.’, Felicity rolled her eyes. ‘Wasn’t that hard to figure out.’

Only then did Felicity notice the other three women, who were all looking at her in various degrees of amusement and annoyance.

‘Uhm’, was all she said, and Fitz patted her shoulder.

‘I thought you were in Starling with the Arrow’, he told her. ‘Not here with the Flash.’

Felicity turned to look, panicked, at Barry.

‘Maybe’, Caitlin, the ever practical one said, ‘we could all just calm down, sit down and explain things? A lot of things?’, there was a hint of desperation in her voice that made Barry nod quickly.

≡AoS≡

Three hours later, everybody fell silent after a long, very long and very complicated series of explanations.

It was funny, Barry though. That Team Flash was so in shock because aliens, and Team Shield was so in shock because metahumans.

Still, there was still one thing nobody addressed.

‘So how did you two know each other?’, Barry pointed between Felicity and Fitz, which were sitting next to each other, knees brushing.

‘MIT’, it was Felicity that answered.

‘She was the only one who talked to me’, Fitz said. ‘Not a lot of people were willing to speak to the weird 15 year old genius.’

‘You were in MIT when you were 15?’, Barry said, incredulous.

Fitz shrugged.

‘He was only there for two and a half years’, Felicity explained. ‘Got his degree and a phd in the meantime.’

‘Darn’, Cisco deadpanned. ‘I did that in three.’

Fitz narrowed his eyes at him. ‘It’s not a competition’.

‘Of course not’, Simmons smoothly said. ‘Because if it were, I’d beat the both of you, considering I got two phDs in the same amount of time.’

Fitz rolled his eyes, but Cisco was looking at her in awe.

‘You’re awesome’, he said pointedly. ‘I love you.’

‘Thank you’, Simmons blushed. ‘I try.’

‘So’, Caitlin brought them back on track. ‘You want to put them on the Index?’

The Shield agents shared a long look, but it was Skye that answered.

‘No, this is different.’

‘And it looks like you can handle it’, May added. ‘But it might be a good idea to keep in touch, in case any of us need help.’

Barry nodded gratefully at that.

‘The Arrow, too’, Skye told Felicity, wiggling her eyebrows.

‘Do you know who he is?’, she asked, and Skye nodded.

‘Oliver Queen is dreamy’, she said in a child like voice, making Barry and Cisco scoff. Caitlin chuckled, and Felicity and Fitz rolled their eyes.

May and Skye said they should take their leave, but it was clear Fitz didn’t want to, and Simmons lingered next to him.

‘How about some drinks?’, Felicity hopefully asked, and Fitz was quick to nod, turning with puppy eyes at May.

‘Do what you want, I’m going to bed.’

‘Me too’, Skye paired the statement with a yawn.

Fitz looked to Simmons, sharing a look that was very interesting to Felicity, and then they both agreed to go out with Team Flash and Felicity.

≡AoS≡

It didn’t take long, for Cisco and Fitz to fall into an avid discussions about their tech. And it didn’t take long, for Caitlin and Simmons to start talking about all the weird things they came upon in their work.

Barry and Felicity didn’t even try to keep up.

But every now and then, either Fitz or Simmons would turn around to look at Barry with wide eyes.

‘You can walk on water?’

‘Sonic punch?!’

‘You time traveled?’

Barry nodded shyly at everything, but they didn’t include him in the conversations, not really.

Felicity and Barry talked easily, not mad about the fact that the four other people at their table weren’t paying them any attention. They also kept drinking, and making sure everybody else always had their glasses full.

So about four hours later, when they decided to leave the bar, when Simmons got up from her chair, she lost her balance, and ended up falling straight into Fitz’s lap.

Caitlin and Cisco started laughing, somewhat hysterically, Barry looked like he wanted to flash to the other side of the table and help, Felicity was holding her breath and Fitz…

Well, Fitz just blinked down at Simmons a couple of times, his hands instinctively coming around her to steady her.

Then, in the most deadpan tone, he looked Simmons right in the eyes and said:

‘What’s up, baby girl?’

That made Simmons snort, and as she blushed, she all but buried her face into Fitz’s chest, while he chuckled.

They managed to leave without any more incidents, but Felicity couldn’t help but notice how Simmons and Fitz were leaning heavily on each other. And so were Caitlin and Cisco.

‘They’re ridiculous’, Barry whispered to Felicity, nodding her head at the pairs. ‘I’m pretty sure they’re both head over heels in love with each other, but they act like they’re not.’

‘I can’t really judge them for that’, Felicity snickered, prompting Barry to roll his eyes.

Then, the Flash looked at where Simmons’ hand was shoved in the back pocket of Fitz’ jeans, and at where he was running his fingers through her hair. They were both speaking quite enthusiastically, and swaying slightly.

‘Think they’re also as dumb?’, Barry asked Felicity.

‘Pretty sure, yeah’, she snorted, loud enough for Fitz to hear.

He stopped mid explanation, came to Felicity’s side, dragging Simmons with him. Fitz grabbed a hold of Felicity’s hand, and started swinging them childishly as they walked, not stopping even when he turned around to continue speaking to Simmons.

Barry laughed for a long while.

≡AoS≡

A couple of months later, Barry gets a text message from Oliver, which is shocking in itself. But then, he reads it.

Oliver: _Why is there a British kid in my Foundry, begging Felicity for schematics to my arrows?_

Barry: _How should I know?!?!!_

Oliver: _He’s wearing a Flash t-shirt._

Barry laughed for a long while, but managed to text back.

Barry: _Pics or it didn’t happen!_

Needless to say, Oliver didn’t respond.


	10. Strength

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cisco notices the ways in which Caitlin changed, while trying to ignore the ways he did. (post 2x2)

Cisco isn’t a weak man. It took a long time for him to believe that, but he isn’t. He has been through a lot, in his life, from struggling with his family, to fighting Captain Cold head on. From sitting 9 months beside a stranger’s hospital bed, to helping Caitlin deal with Ronnie’s death.

Well, the first time around. She didn’t let him help the second time around.

The six months after the singularity were probably the hardest of Cisco’s life. Not only did he had to deal with everything that happened, Wells, Eddie and Robbie, Joe trying his hardest to make Cisco work with the Police, but he also had to keep his distance from Caitlin.

It was hard. Incredibly so.

But she asked him to do it. Begged, really, for Cisco to leave her alone, to forget she was ever by his side in the Cortex, to forget she existed.

It was cruel, Cisco thought. And there were moments, about 5 a day, when his strength crumbled, when he found himself with his fingers hovering over Caitlin’s phone number, when he turned around to tell her a joke, before he remembered she wasn’t there.

When Iris and Joe developed the plan, to bring Barry back on track, Cisco didn’t tell them about his own plan, to bring Caitlin back. Joe knew, that Cisco saw her at the rally, and he tried to ask him about it, when he saw his face, but thankfully, the detective didn’t insist.

Cisco had a plan. It was thorough and well thought, and it was perfect, bullet proof. And it almost went out the window, when he saw her. Smiling softly at him, a new haircut and new clothes, in a white lab coat she never wore at Star Labs. Cisco wanted nothing more then, than to rush to her side and hug her tightly, drag her away from there. But he didn’t, he was stronger than that. He went on with his plan, and he got Caitlin back in the Cortex, by his side and by Barry’s.

It was good.

Still, Cisco noticed things. He always noticed things about Caitlin.

She was different. Not bad different, not as broken as she was the first time Ronnie died, but she was different. There were little details, that seemed insignificant, but Cisco knew better.

The makeup, for once. She almost always wore it, but in the past, it was all natural, a lip balm on the lips, some corrector under her eyes and highlights on her face. Now, Caitlin was wearing darker eyeshadows, and her lipstick had color, bright color.

So did her clothes. And, Cisco couldn’t help but notice, they weren’t just more colorful, they were also tighter, more fitted on her body. Caitlin has always been fashionable, and she has always looked perfect, professional, but her style changed, a bit. It was more… playful. Still professional, but not as up tight.

Her hair made her look younger. The bouncy curls that were familiar, the bangs there weren’t.

But her appearance wasn’t the only thing that changed.

She acted differently, especially towards men.

Barry and her had always been close, there was a weird relationship between them, an understanding, a strong link that Cisco was sure he never really understood. But now, it all happened out in the open. Now, Caitlin didn’t shy away from Barry’s touch when anybody else was around. Now, they teased each other and laughed together no matter whom was near them. They didn’t leave the room to have emotional conversations, they just huddled around closer to each other.

She was different with other men, too, Cisco was surprised to notice.

Jay, for once. Cisco didn’t miss, how her eyes lingered, how her fingers played with the professional wall she always raised between herself and her patients.

It wasn’t just Jay, tough. There were strangers on the street, men who stood in front of her in line at the coffee shop. Hell, when they had to deal with Captain Cold, Caitlin’s eyes were mostly on his body for the entire time.

A couple of times, Cisco caught Caitlin side-eyeing Iris in the same way. Which was a development he didn’t really want to think about, cause he’d probably never stop.

It was weird.

The first time she lost Ronnie, Cailtin closed herself off. She froze her emotions, she pushed everybody away (except Cisco, and it took him a long time to convince her to let him stay). But now, Caitlin did the exact opposite, she opened herself up. To Barry, to Iris, to all other men.

Except for Cisco.

Nothing changed in the way Caitlin treated him. They were bffs, as they always were, they went out for drinks, they worked closely together, they were there for one another, as always.

Caitlin’s eyes never strayed away from his, and Cisco… was disappointed.

He’s not stupid. He realized, pretty early on, that he was attracted to Caitlin. That hasn’t changed over time, not at all. And now, he felt jealous. It was ridiculous.

But Cisco was strong. So he ignored it, as usual.

◊◊

With Lisa Snart in the Cortex, Cisco was having a bit of trouble focusing.

Just a bit.

He still did his job, developed the tech they needed as quickly as he could. And he still noticed things, especially the way Barry and Caitlin made it their mission to never leave Cisco alone in the room with Lisa.

That… didn’t stop him.

Lisa was a beautiful woman, and Cisco still remembered how her body felt under his hands. It was there for a brief moment, but Cisco remembered it. Vividly.

And Lisa was evil, yes, but above that, she was a flirt.

Cisco wasn’t stupid, he was never going to fall for her charms again. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t have some fun. And flirting with her, it was fun. Harmless, really.

‘What is her problem?’, Lisa all but hissed at one point.

Cisco shared a confused look with Barry, who was in the room at the moment, and she huffed.

‘Your doctor looks like she’s planning my death. I’m not scared, of course, it’s just annoying.’

‘Can you blame her?’, Barry smirked. ‘You seduced her best friend and kidnapped him and his brother. And you hurt them.’

Lisa tsked. ‘My brother did the hurting.’

Barry huffed, and Lisa turned to look at Cisco again.

‘Is this… a love triangle?’, she smiled, a bit. ‘Did I accidently stumble upon a love story?’

Cisco… didn’t understand, so he turned to Barry. He didn’t understand the way Barry was looking at him either.

‘Is she jealous?’, Lisa went on, sounding giddy.

‘That’s ridiculous’, Cisco rolled his eyes, finally catching up. ‘Caitlin has never… No.’

‘What about you?’, she asked, and Cisco couldn’t look at her anymore. Instead, he looked at Barry. Who, surprisingly enough, didn’t seem surprised at all.

‘How about you mind your own business?’, Barry said, strongly, and Cisco was thankful for it.

When Caitlin came back into the room, she didn’t look at Cisco once.

He was very confused.

◊◊

Cisco was strong. He managed to keep what was happening to him a secret. Stein knew, but he was gone with Rip Hunter’s team. His secret was safe.

Until one night. It was a random night, nothing going on. But Caitlin and Barry were still in the Cortex, as was Cisco.

Caitlin went past him, and she brushed her knuckles against the back of his hand, for some reason. Cisco felt the already familiar vibe, and what he saw, it wasn’t as horrible as all the other things before.

It was Caitlin, looking more beautiful that he has ever seen her. In a short dress and high heels, and she was smiling at Barry. They were in a bar, probably, and they both looked like they didn’t have any cares in the world.

Cisco’s heart beat herder in his chest, and then Barry said something.

‘What is wrong with us? I mean, we’re in our 20s. We should be having fun, we should meet people, go on lots of dates…’

Caitlin was smiling softly at him, and her cheeks were red.

‘Well’, she grabbed a hold of her glass, ‘here’s to liquid courage.’

Then, the vision changed, and it showed Caitlin making a fool out of herself on a stage, with Barry actually singing next to her.

The next thing Cisco saw was Caitlin mostly naked, just in her black lingerie. It took a while, for him to realize what was happening, and then she was in her bed, happy that she sang, asking Barry to stay with her.

‘Cisco!’, Caitlin’s voice brought him back to the real world. She was right in front of him, concerned, and god, how much she has changed since the night he just saw.

She slowly put a hand on his shoulder, her thumb barely touching his neck, and Cisco’s world shifted again.

This time, he was in Ronnie’s old apartment, the one he had before he and Caitlin moved in together. She was almost naked, again, and so was he, but they were getting ready for bed, putting on pajamas..

‘Cisco is such a nice guy’, she was saying.

‘Yeah’, Ronnie agreed. ‘I like the dude a lot. He’s as smart as you are and he’s as cool as I am.’

Caitlin barked out a laugh at that, but her expression turned serious after.

‘I think he’s hiding something.’

‘Like what?’, Ronnie frowned.

‘I don’t know. Something important. He… never talks about his past. About anything that happened before he came to Star Labs.’

‘Yeah’, Ronnie nodded. ‘I did notice that. But, that’s his choice. And, come on, we’ve only know each other for a short time. Maybe he’ll open up later on.’

‘Yeah’, Caitlin smiled. ‘You’re right.’

His vision ended there, and Cisco didn’t have time to get himself together, before Barry touched him.

What he saw now happened yesterday, in the Cortex, because Cisco recognized the dress Caitlin was wearing.

‘I don’t know what’s happening’, she was telling Barry. ‘He’s keeping something from us, and… Cisco hasn’t done that in a long time.’

‘Well-‘, Barry winced.

‘Not from me’, Caitlin interrupted him, very distressed. ‘He hasn’t kept anything from me since…’, she shook her head, a few tears falling from her eyes. ‘I’m scared.’

‘We should talk to him’, Barry said softly. ‘We’re his friends, he should know, that there’s nothing he could say that would change that.’

‘It’s clear that he doesn’t know that. And that… That hurts me the most, Barry.’

This time, when he came back to his own timeline, Cisco pushed their hands away. Caitlin and Barry were startled, and there was hurt in their eyes, especially in Caitlin’s, but he couldn’t, Cisco couldn’t let them touch him anymore.

‘Something’s happening to me’, he said slowly, trying his hardest not to burst out crying. ‘Because of the particle accelerator.’

Barry’s face fell, instantly. All concern was replaced by anger, and Cisco knew, that it wasn’t directed at him, but he couldn’t look Barry in the eye anymore.

Of course, he looked to Caitlin. She looked concerned, but she straightened her back.

‘What can you do?’, she asked slowly and it took Cisco a few tries to get the words out.

‘I can see the past.’

◊◊

‘But it’s weird’, Cisco finished explaining, ‘because until now, this only happened with people from alternate universes.’

Caitlin and Barry were silent during his explanation, and it took a while for them to say something now.

It was Caitlin, who took a few steps towards him and glared Cisco into submission.

‘I need to do a full body check.’, she said. ‘Get in my lab and take your shirts off.’

Cisco gulped, but did as she asked.

She put on gloves, and Cisco didn’t get any visions when they touched his skin.

Caitlin’s hands were shaking, as she was putting sensors on Cisco’s upper body. She didn’t meet his eye, and she was biting her lower lip, hard, he could see it turn blue, even under her lipstick.

So he took a deep breath and took her hands in his, making sure not to let their skin touch.

Caitlin relaxed slightly, letting out a shaking breath. But she didn’t look up at him.

‘How could you not tell me?’, she whispered, and Cisco had to take a few deep breaths before responding.

‘I’m terrified.’

‘Even more so, you should’ve told me. How can I protect you if I don’t know what’s wrong?’

Cisco’s heart broke at that, and he was ashamed to admit there were tears in his eyes. But it was okay, because Caitlin's were the same.

‘I thought…’, she went on. ‘I don’t know what I thought. I knew, Cisco, _I knew_ something was wrong, and I thought it was something horrible.’

‘This is horrible’, Cisco said, without thinking.

That made Caitlin finally look up at him.

‘You’re not hurt, Cisco.’, she said, strongly.

Then, she cursed. Which shocked Cisco quite a lot. But, even more shockingly, then Caitlin forcefully kicked his knees apart, stepping between them and forcefully hugging him.

Cisco was shirtless, sensors still stuck to his skin, but nothing happened when Caitlin’s skin touched his. So Cisco hugged her back, as strongly as she was hugging him.

They just breathed together, for a while, gathering strength from their close proximity. Cisco’s fingers were probably bruising her waist, but it was okay, because Caitlin’s nails were digging into the back of his neck.

‘Damn it, Cisco’, she whispered, and he felt her lips moving against his neck. It made him shiver, so he got distracted.

The next thing he knew, Caitlin’s lips were on his. He gasped, but it only made her kiss him harder, as Cisco felt the already familiar vibe sensation.

He saw a continuation of the last vision he had. From the day before, Barry and Caitlin.

‘That hurts me the most’, she was saying.

‘Cisco would never do anything to hurt you’, Barry said strongly, ‘you know that.’

‘Something’s wrong’, Caitlin shook her head. ‘Something is terribly wrong with him, I know, I’m certain Barry, and he won’t talk to us. He won’t talk to me.’

She was crying, and Barry was frowning at her.

‘Caitlin’, he said slowly, ‘this isn’t just about the fact that Cisco’s keeping secrets.’

‘I love him so much’, was her reply. ‘I always have, but it’s…’, she took a deep breath. ‘It’s different now. And I’ve been building up the courage to tell him for months. How… how can I do that, if he won’t talk to me?’

The vision ended there, and when he came back to it, Caitlin’s lips were still against his. But they weren’t kissing, not really, because she was still crying, and he was just sitting there, frozen in place.

So Cisco gathered all the strength he had, and moved. He still had his arms around her waist, and he brought her as close as he could, kissing her strongly, borderline desperately.

Caitlin took a deep breath, before all but melting in his arms. Her fingers found their way into Cisco’s hair and they were cold, making him shiver again. 

He was still sitting on the medical table, and she was standing between his legs, and in his arms, and she was still trembling, but he wasn’t. They were touching, a lot, and he wasn’t vibrating with any impending vision.

Cisco stopped moving his lips, and Caitlin moved back. Not much, but enough to look at him.

He raised his hands, from her waist to her wrists. Nothing happened. Cisco let his fingers roam over any parts of Caitlin’s skin he had access to, and nothing happened.

Caitlin stopped him, after a while, by kissing him again. Soft, quickly, just a few pecks on the lips, just enough to divert his attention to her, only to her.

‘We’ll figure this out’, she whispered when she pulled away. ‘Don’t lock me out again.’

Cisco nodded, without hesitation, and it made her smile. He’d do anything to make her smile.

◊◊

Over the next weeks, Cisco documented every change he could see in Caitlin.

He saw that her eyes stopped moving down other men’s bodies, but started moving down his. He saw the winks she threw his way, he counted the jokes and the teases. He tried to remember every time Caitlin touched him without reason, and he counted the number of times he got a vision out of it. Unfortunately, it happened often, but slowly, the number went down.

Slowly, Cisco learned how to control it. He had to, just so he could give Caitlin’s touches all the attention they deserved.


	11. Hot Flight Attendant

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anon asked: _I was wondering if you'd please please pretty please write another hartmon chapter??? Au would be awesome_
> 
> Based on [this post](http://folding-space.tumblr.com/post/135400486648/houseofhannibal-houseofhannibal)

It’s not that Cisco hated flying, it's just that it was utterly boring.

Yes, he could actually be productive, as Caitlin kept telling him. He could read, he could do some work and write rapports. But Cisco never did, he was always way too bored to actually do anything.

So flying was the bane of his existence, really.

But it had to be done, he couldn’t really drive to conferences when they were literally on the other side of the country. So here he was, on a flight back to Central City.

It was 2AM, so the airport wasn’t packed, thank god. Cisco got pretty quickly through security and he had a cup of coffee before boarding the plane.

The plane also wasn’t packed. Not only was it small, but it was also about half empty. Cisco was very thankful for the fact that he had three seats to himself.

It was going to be a four hour flight, which was going to be three hours too long for him, but at least he’ll have space to spread his legs. And he’ll have some food. Nasty plane food, but at least he got something, for flying in the middle of the night.

When the flight attendants started moving around, Cisco steeled himself for the boring speech he’s heard a bazillion times before.

He did perk up, however, when his eyes landed on the flight attendant who was going to be giving the speech.

For one, it was a man. About the same height as Cisco, but he seemed smaller, thinner, even if he had pretty decently broad shoulders.

The dark blue suit he was wearing was fitted perfectly, and the light blue of the shirt brought out his matching eyes.

He was attractive, very much so, completely Cisco’s type. It was totally not the time and place to think of such things, but Cisco couldn’t help himself. So he perked up a little when the guy started speaking, willing to at least fake paying attention.

‘Hello and in behalf of our company we’d like to thank you for traveling with us.’

The guy was smiling politely, but he sounded as bored as Cisco was.

‘Now, if I could have your attention, please’, the guy went on, ‘I’d like, well, I wouldn’t really like, but I kinda have to talk to you about security measures.’

That made Cisco pause.

‘If you don’t like any of my jokes, there are six exits’.

Cisco snorted, before he caught himself. He was the only one, though, everybody else in the plane stayed silent.

Except for the flight attendant, who kept on with his speech.  It wasn’t like anything Cisco has ever heard on a plane. It was filled with bad puns that made Cisco cringe so hard he was almost crying with laughter.

‘For those of you who are traveling with children…’, the guy sighed, deeply. ‘Why, oh god why?!’

Once again, Cisco was the only one who laughed at that. Maybe a bit too loudly, because for the first time, the guy’s eyes zeroed in on him. They narrowed slightly, and maybe Cisco would have given him some sort of a sign, a wink or something. But, really, he was too busy laughing under his breath.  

∆

‘What can I get you?’, Cisco heard a voice ask, and when he looked up, Hot Flight Attendant (HFA, for short, how he started calling him in his head) was looking expectedly at him.

‘Nothing, thank you.’, Cisco shook his head. ‘I’m fine.’

The guy narrowed his eyes.

‘You’ll have a coke and rum’, he said, with finality, starting to prepare it. ‘Which you won’t drink for the next’, he squinted his eyes and counted the number of people that he still had to serve, ‘let’s say half hour.’

Cisco’s eyebrows were almost in his hair. The guy didn’t seem bothered by it.

‘Is that clear?’, he asked with authority, and Cisco really shouldn't have found that as hot as he did.

‘Why am I getting a drink’, Cisco found his voice, ‘if I’m not going to drink it?’

The guy bent over, until he could lower his voice, so that only Cisco could hear him.

‘Because I’m not allowed to drink on the job, and I’m not going to fucking survive this flight without some alcohol.’

Cisco opened his mouth.

‘And you’re the only one’, the flight attendant went on, ‘who seemed willing to break the rules for a tortured soul.’

Cisco smiled at that, looking at the guy from under his eyelashes. He was even more attractive up close, where Cisco could see his stubble and the way his lips were chapped.

‘And how’d you figure that out?’, Cisco couldn’t help but ask, and even to his ears, his tone was flirty. Filthy flirty.

The guy looked him in the eye, then, and very pointedly put the glass down on the mini table.

‘Half hour’, he said, eyes not once leaving Cisco.

Then, he winked, straightened his posture and wiped the smile off his face, going back to pushing the cart down the aisle.

∆

About 45 minutes later, not that Cisco was counting, when everybody seemed to be asleep, HFA came back. He pushed Cisco’s feet off the seats, sat down, groaning deeply. He also took the glass of coke and rum and, without opening his eyes, drank all of it.

‘Rude’, Cisco couldn’t help but point out.

HFA huffed, then groaned, then rubbed his hands over his eyes.

‘I fucking hate this job’, he seethed out.

Cisco waited him and, sure enough, the guy finally, finally! looked to him.

‘I really do’, HFA sighed. ‘It’s the worst thing I could be doing. I’d honestly prefer to be a barista at Starbucks.’

‘So you’re trying to get fired?’, Cisco asked, trying to wrap his head around this guy’s reasoning.

He waved a dismissive hand. ‘I already quit, this is my last flight.’

‘Ah’, Cisco nodded. ‘So you decided to go out with a bang.’

The guy tilted his head, his eyes roaming up and down Cisco’s body.

‘Something like that’, he said, and Cisco chuckled.

‘So what’s your story?’, HFA turned his body around, more towards Cisco, looking at him expectedly, with a curious look in his eyes.

Cisco shrugged at the question. ‘I really don’t like flying, I find it really freaking boring, but I also have to travel a lot.’

‘For work?’

Cisco nodded, but didn’t explain more, even though HFA seemed to be waiting for it. But it Cisco would’ve started to talk about his work, HFA would probably be off his seat in seconds, because he didn’t really seem like the type of guy to dig nerds.

HFA moved closer, leaning his upper body towards Cisco.

‘You know’, he said with a very mischievous look in his eyes, ‘I’ve been a flight attendant for two years, and I have yet to join the mile high club.’

Cisco gulped, just in time with HFA guy putting a hand on his thigh. Not very up, but up enough for Cisco to understand.

‘Yeah?’, he breathed out, and the guy nodded, pushing his fingers into Cisco’s flesh.

‘Yeah’, HFA bit on his lower lip, eyes moving to Cisco’s. They stayed there.

‘You wanna help me out with that? Everybody’s pretty much asleep.’, HFA asked in a very lowered voice, and Cisco thought about it.

Really thought about it.

Cisco could go with this stranger, this really attractive stranger that he couldn’t wait to get his lips on, and, for once in his life, he’d actually have some fun on a plane. Or Cisco could say no, and spend the rest of the plane regretting his decision and playing Candy Crush.

‘Lead the way, dude’, Cisco said, and HFA grinned, before grabbing a hold of his hand and pulling him down the aisle.

∆

There wasn’t a lot of space in the bathroom, two was definitely a crowd. And neither of them had condoms, so it wasn’t like they could do a whole lot. And the rest of the people of the plane were asleep, so they had to be quiet.

But Cisco came, and he came hard, with HFA’s hand around him and his tongue down his throat. And when HFA came, he bit on Cisco’s neck, and that was going to leave a mark that Caitlin and Wells were going to notice and tease him about.  So Cisco had to retaliate, and really, that only lead to another round of orgasms.

They both seemed to be reluctant to go, but HFA argued that they’ll be serving food soon enough, and that he had to help at that.

So he left. With a long, filthy, parting kiss, and a slap on Cisco’s ass.

∆

‘After we land, please head out in an orderly fashion to the exit in front of the plane’, HFA was saying, and Cisco was trying really hard not to stare.

‘You’ll be taken directly to get your luggage, and if you’re changing to a flight with a different airline, we don’t care.’

Cisco had to bit on his lower lip to keep himself from laughing.

‘Okay’, HFA went on, ‘now get the fuck out of the plane.’

Cisco laughed at that. And for it, he got a wink from HFA when he passed him on his way out.

∆

Cisco had just enough time to shower and drink some coffee before he had to leave for work.

Caitlin and Wells both seemed interested in hearing how the conference went, and however exhausted Cisco was, he pushed through it and answered all their questions.

‘Oh, yes’, Wells interrupted at one point. ‘Excuse me, Cisco, Caitlin but our new employee is here.’

That had them both frowning, because this was brand new information to them, and when he turned around, Cisco froze completely.

Because HFA was there. Shaking Well’s hand and smiling politely.

And then he was shaking Caitlin’s hand and smiling politely.

‘And this is Cisco Ramon’, Wells said, ‘our mechanical engineer. Cisco, I’d like you to meet my new executive assistant, Hartley Rathaway.’

They shook hands, even if Cisco was gaping. HFA… Hartley just smiled at him.

‘Cisco, huh?’, he smirked.

He nodded. ‘Hartley’, he tried out the name on his tongue and he regretted not knowing it a couple of hours ago.

‘Doctor Wells’, Hartley turned to his boss, ‘if you don’t mind me asking, what’s the company’s policy about employees dating?’

Wells blinked. ‘We don’t have a policy.’

‘Oh, good’, Hartley breathed out, turning to wink at Cisco. ‘I thought we were going to have a problem.’

‘Are we dating?’, Cisco frowned. ‘What is happening?’

‘We’re not dating now’, Hartley rolled his eyes. ‘But we are going to.’

Then, he snorted. It sounded mocking. ‘Come on, Ciscito, I thought you were supposed to be smart.’

‘I think I liked you better when you were too busy to talk’, the words were out of his mouth before he could stop them, and Cisco realized what he said only when he heard Caitlin breathe out a shocked _oh my god_.

‘Oh, this is gonna be fun’, Hartley said, a manic grin on his face.

Cisco couldn’t help but return it.


	12. Psych 101

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anon wanted a Captain Canary college AU. I paired that with a bit more KillerVibe.

‘Good morning, and welcome to Psychology 101. My name is Professor Wells and you will start this lovely chapter of your college life with an experiment. So please, all of you, grab your things and make your way down here, next to me.’

All the students hesitated, but they did so, reluctantly, squeezing next to each other around the teacher’s desk.

‘Now’, Wells said, waving a couple of papers around, ‘I will call your names in groups of four, and you’ll all take a seat on a row. These will be your pairings for this experiment, and please don’t ask any questions, I’ll explain everything when we’re done with the teams.’

└┐└┐└┐

‘Sara Lance, Leonard Snart, Caitlin Snow, Cisco Ramon’.

└┐└┐└┐

‘This experiment is a long-running one, throughout the course of the semester’, Wells started explaining. ‘At the end of it, each of you will present to me an essay, I don’t care if it’s 100 words or 10.000, but an essay in which you will tell me something new you found out about your team mates, and a short analysis on the topic.’

He was met with silence.

‘This is a social experiment’, Wells smiled. ‘It’s supposed to force you to socialize with strangers and not only that, but get to actually know them.’

Again, silence.

‘Any questions?’

There was one hand.

‘Yes, Miss Snow.’

‘What kind of information are we talking about?’, she asked, politely but clearly confused.

‘Anything personal’, Wells shrugged. ‘Anything worth thinking about, in terms of psychology. For example, I don’t think you knowing what size shoes Miss Lance wears would enquire a psychological analysis, but maybe if you’d discover Mr. Ramon’s fobia-‘

‘Spiders’, Mr. Ramon rudely interrupted, pulling a face. ‘I’m afraid of spiders.’

Wells rolled his eyes. ‘And thus, Miss Snow, you’re forbidden to talk about Mr. Ramon’s arachnofobia.’

Snow glared at Ramon, who had the decency to look sheepish. Wells couldn’t help but smirk, before moving on to the next question.

└┐└┐└┐

Looking around at his team mates, Cisco couldn’t help but regret choosing Psychology of all things, for his extra credits.

Two incredibly beautiful woman, one that looked like she could crush his skull with her thighs and one that looked three times as smart as him, and a surprisingly attractive man that Cisco could easily assume had a bike in the parking lot and drugs on his person.

These were the type of people Cisco would have never ever met in college, and yeah, he understood the point of the experiment. But that didn’t mean it made things easier for him. Quite the opposite.

Still, he put on a polite smile as he introduced himself, as he explained that he’s an engineer major and doing this for the extra credits. He listened, as Caitlin said she was biochem, please-call-me-Snart was in programming and Sara wasn’t set on a major yet, but was leaning towards social works.

A weird association of people, Cisco thought. Still, he accepted their friend requests on facebook, and joined the group Caitlin created.

And then, there was silence.

For a couple of weeks, the group was inactive and once a week, when they met at Psych 101, they stood on opposite parts of the lecture hall.

Cisco was mildly disappointed.

└┐└┐└┐

It was 2AM on a Tuesday night when his phone pinged with a facebook message.

_Caitlin Snow: is anyone awake? I could use some help._   
_Leonard Snart: I’m here, but I don’t wanna help_   
_Cisco Ramon: I’m here too, and I DO wanna help_   
_Caitlin Snow: any of you boys up for a walk in the park?_   
_Leonard Snart: it’s 2am_   
_Caitlin Snow: yes, and I’m having a bit of a meltdown and I have a bottle of whisky that I’m willing to share_   
_Leonard Snort: which park?_   
_Cisco Ramon: I’m in too (would have been even without the booze)_

When Cisco got to the park, Caitlin was sitting on one of the tiny roundabouts, legs crossed and the bottle of booze between them. Cisco didn’t get to ask what was wrong before Snart came up to them, jogging lightly.

He sat down next to them on the roundabout, snatched the bottle away from Caitlin and pointed a finger at Cisco.

‘You deal with the lady issues, I’m not good at comforting people.’

Caitlin punched him lightly, making Snart flinch heavily.

‘It’s not lady issues.’

‘What is it, then?’, Cisco asked.

‘I’m tired.’, she sighed. ‘Exhausted, really.’

‘It’s only the second month of school.’, Cisco said, frowning.

‘I know’, Caitlin nodded. ‘If I keep this up, I’m never going to survive all three years of college. I … need to learn how to take breaks.’

Snart gave her the whisky, and she took a long sip of it, scrunching up her face as she swallowed.

‘Maybe getting drunk in the middle of the night in a deserted park with two strange guys isn’t the best idea’, Snart told Caitlin, narrowing his eyes.

Caitlin snorted. ‘I’m not your type.’

‘You don’t know that.’, Snart didn’t hesitate.

She just threw him a look.

‘Fair enough’, Snart shrugged, taking the bottle back.

‘Why call us, though?’, Cisco said, thinking out loud. ‘I mean, why not call one of your friends?’

Caitlin blushed at that and quickly adverted her eyes, and Cisco knew he fucked up.

‘I haven’t had time to make any friends yet’, Caitlin finally said. ‘As I said, I need to learn how to take study breaks.’

Cisco was smart enough not to say anything else. Snart was not.

‘Are you a nerd?’

Caitlin rolled her eyes, taking the whiskey.

‘Yeah’, she said after taking a sip. ‘Yeah I am.’

‘Me too’, Cisco quickly admitted, hoping to make her feel better. ‘People called me King of the Nerds all throughout highschool. I didn’t have a lot of friends, let me tell you.’

Caitlin took another sip of whiskey, then gave him the bottle before saying ‘Same.’

As Cisco drank, she leveled Snart with a look. ‘How much are you judging us right now?’

He snorted, and took the bottle from Cisco before responding.

‘I dig nerds a lot more than the popular kids. My image in highschool was that of a … bad boy. Nerds left me alone, popular kids didn’t.’

He didn’t explain more, opting to drink instead, but Caitlin didn’t seem bothered by it.

That’s how they spent the next hour, passing the whisky bottle around and talking about things that happened in highschool, from embarrassing stories (Cisco) and trouble they got into (Snart), to cool project they were part of (Caitlin).

The boys walked Caitlin to her dorm room, and she thanked them a couple of times, going as far as hugging them. Well, she hugged Cisco, Snart took a step back and told her a very impersonal ‘not happening.’

Cisco woke up the next morning with a massive headache and a string of messages on the group chat.

 _Sara Lance: NOOOOO_  
 _Sara Lance: I can’t believe I missed this_  
 _Sara Lance: of all the nights to actually sleep ugh_  
 _Sara Lance: I’m not missing out next time_  
 _Sara Lance: here’s my number_  
 _Sara Lance: also I work at the Starbucks off campus_  
 _Sara Lance: I’ll give you a discount in count of your hangover_  
 _Sara Lance: if you stop by today_  
 _Caitiln Snow: I’ll be there in 30_  
 _Leonard Snart: you woke me up, so I might as well get cheap coffee_  
  


That was 30 minutes ago. Cisco didn’t bother with answering, he just put on clean clothes and ran across campus.

└┐└┐└┐

It went on from there. They didn’t often meet up all together, but it happened at least once a week. Either at Sara’s Starbucks, or in the library if they had a lot of homework, they even met in the park once or twice.

But more often than that, they’d end up in pairs.

The first time around, Sara and Snart went to the gym together.

Then Caitlin and Cisco met at a bookstore.

Sara and Caitlin went shoe shopping.

On one memorable night, Snart dragged Cisco to a club.

The next time Snart wanted to go to a club, the girls joined them as well.

Caitlin dragged Snart to get a haircut.

Snart and Sara went out for coffee.

Sara and Cisco went out for lunch.

Cisco helped Caitlin set up a dvd player.

Snart got tickets for the four of them to a baseball game.

Sara took them all to the movies.

Caitlin took them all to see a play.

Cisco took them all to the Children’s Science Museum.

Caitlin was the first one to fall asleep in Cisco’s dorm room, still pouring over her books.

When Sara fell asleep in his room, they were watching Star Wars.

Snart fell asleep because his neighbor was having incredibly loud sex.

└┐└┐└┐

The essays were due in three weeks, but Cisco didn’t think he’ll be able to turn his in.

He has gotten to know these people, some more than others, but he didn’t think all the informations he got about his team mates were… personal enough.

Sure, he knew Caitlin was a kind person who just wanted to help, but he didn’t know if she would ever be capable of “taking breaks”, as she put it, in order to have a relationship with a guy.

And he knew that something horrible must have happened to Snart when he was young in order to make him such a defensive asshole, afraid of getting touched, but Cisco didn’t know what.

And he knew that Sara didn’t actually want to be a social worker, that that father didn’t agree with what she really wanted to do, but didn’t know what.

The essay was due in three weeks, and that’s all it took for Cisco to write it.

└┐└┐└┐

They were sitting outside of Starbucks, enjoying the sun, for one, waiting on Sara to get her break so that she’d join them. It was just him and Snart, and the silence wasn’t awkward.

Someone sat down at the table near them, a little girl, couldn’t have been more than 7, and her father.

For a second, Cisco thought that she was crying, her eyes were red and puffy. But then she sneezed three times in a row.

‘Oh, would you stop it?’, her father said gruffly. ‘If I get you a hot chocolate now you wouldn’t even be able to drink it.’

‘It’s not my fault’, the girl sniffed pitifully. ‘I’m allergic.’

‘Yeah’, the man snorted. ‘Just another thing on the long list of shitty things you inherited from your mother.’

The kid didn’t say anything to that.

‘Try to stop while I get you the damn chocolate’, her father sneered before going into the Starbucks, leaving a 7 year old little girl completely unsupervised.

Cisco opened his mouth to say something, but he stopped when he became aware of Snart.

The guy was stiff as a blank, every muscle in his body tense. His fists were clenched, he was biting on his bottom lip and his breathing was irregular.

Cisco wanted to ask if he was okay, but he knew Snart enough to know that it would be a terrible idea.

So, instead, he grabbed a pack of tissues and went to the girl’s side, crouching in front of her chair.

‘I’m not supposed to talk to strangers’, she said before Cisco even got to introduce himself.

He did so, as kindly as he could, and he gave the little girl the tissues and a lollipop he forgot in his pocket.

When her father came back, Cisco explained what antihistamines were, and said he’d happily give the little girl a pill.

‘I’m not talking drugs from you, asshole’, the father sneered, raising his voice and making the girl flinch.

‘Okay’, Cisco calmly replied. ‘That please move your ass to the drugstore down the street and buy your kid some medicine so she doesn’t suffer for something that can be easily fixed with one over the counter pill.’

‘Please, daddy’, the kid sniffed. ‘I can’t breathe too much.’

That got the guy scrambling to pick her up and all but running to the drugstore, and Cisco collapsed heavily back into his chair. Snart was staring at him.

‘My dad was an asshole’, he finally said. ‘I got hit a lot, so my little sister didn’t have to.’

Cisco swallowed. ‘ _Was_ an asshole?’

‘He’s dead’, Snart said with no emotion. ‘And… I’m getting help about my boundaries issues.’

‘Good’, was all Cisco thought of saying.

That week, he asked Wells if their essays will be confidential. They were.

└┐└┐└┐

Cisco was walking Caitlin to one of her classes. It happened a lot these days, and if he would have stopped to think about it, he might have realized a few things. But he didn’t.

So he just walked close to Caitlin, their shoulders brushing with each step, listening to her babbling about what her mother said on their last phone call.

They were passing through a park on campus, that was filled with students chilling.

The chill was disrupted by a loud, vicious, female yell.

‘Stop being an idiot! Stop closing off and let me help you, god damn it! I want to help you!’

Cisco recognized that voice. And sure enough, when he turned around, he saw Sara. Sitting on a blanket, with Snart very close to her. He was terrified, to put it mildly, Cisco thought he could see him shaking.

Sara’s hands were on his neck, and she was staring him down desperately.

He didn’t say anything, so Sara moved, boldly flinging her body across his, settling in his lap. Her hands went around his neck, and she was hugging him, possibly tightly, wrapping even her legs around him.

‘Please’, Cisco heard her say. ‘Please let me in.’

Slowly, Snart brought his hands up. When they were around Sara, Cisco saw him deflate completely. He tucked his face into crook of her neck and the shaking stopped.

And then Sara kissed him, and Snart didn’t resist it. At all. He fell backwards on the blanket, brining Sara along with him, arranging themselves until she was sprawled on top of him, her blonde hair hiding their faces, but nothing could have hidden the way Snart’s hands moved to grab Sara’s ass.

‘Oh’, he heard Caitlin say, and Cisco snapped back to reality.

When he looked at her, Caitlin was very pointedly not looking at Sara and Snart, but not looking at him either. She was blushing and biting on her lower lip.

‘I’m going to be late for class’, she said, and Cisco moved again.

The rest of the walk was spent silently, and Cisco was mad at himself, that the only realized he had feelings for Caitlin because of Sara and Snart.

That week, he asked Wells if the people in his team had to be aware of how he came to find the information about them. Wells looked at him weirdly, but ultimately he said no.

└┐└┐└┐

Cisco took Caitlin out for dinner.

He made reservations at a nice Italian place, he picked her up and got her flowers, he even wore a tie.

It was a nice evening, and as he walked Caitlin back to her dorm, Cisco wrapped a hand around her shoulders and he was delighted that she allowed it.

‘Cisco’, she said as they were a block away, ‘was this a date?’

Cisco chuckled, the tips of his ears burning. ‘Yeah, but it says a lot about me, that you didn’t know it was.’

‘Oh’, was all Caitlin said.

Cisco took his hand off her, wanting to put some distance between them, but Caitlin didn’t let him. He grabbed a hold of his hand, wrapping their fingers around one another and kept him close.

She also whined and pushed her cheek to his shoulder.

‘I don’t know how to do this.’

Cisco chuckled, so embarrassed and overwhelmed. ‘Me neither, babe.’

Caitlin shivered, and Cisco was quick to let go of her in order to take off his jacket and put it around her shoulders.

She smiled up at him. ‘It sure looks like you do.’

He ducked his head, knowing full well he was blushing. But then there were fingers under his chin, gently guiding his head up.

When he opened his eyes, Caitlin was blushing.

‘Well I am smarter than you’, she said, making him glare. ‘So I know that you should kiss me right now.’

Cisco blinked, twice.

‘For once’, he breathed out, ‘I’m not going to argue with you’.

The kiss was slow and sweet and Cisco couldn’t help but think about how different it was from Sara and Snart’s first kiss. But then Caitlin bit on his lower lip and he didn’t think about anything anymore.

└┐└┐└┐

Wells said that Cisco’s essay was the best, only because of the weird way he dealt with the very important pieces of information he gathered of his colleagues.

In his essay, he talked about how strong Sara was. About how even when she compromised, she still got what she wanted. How she was a good person who wanted to be perceived like she was not, how Sara was her very own superhero for how she helped Snart.

He talked about how Snart was a victim of abuse and how he tried to hide that behind leather and rudeness. About how he didn’t think he deserved to get help, but how much he wanted it. About how important it was for Snart that he finally let someone in.

He talked about how deprived of love Caitlin was. About how she shivered every time he called her _babe_ or _sweetheart_ or any other tooth rotting fluffy pet name. About how she blushed every time Sara called her _girlfriend_ and every time Snart called her _bro_.

But mostly, Cisco talked about how he would make sure that Caitlin will never be deprived of love ever again.


	13. Terrified

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> anon asked: _could you possibly write a cisco x caitlin fanific where caitlin gets hurt pretty bad and cisco has to rush her to the hospital or something?:)) much angst._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven't updated this since last year. Well then.

Caitlin was late and Cisco didn’t like it when Caitlin was late.

Especially when it was the middle of the night and after a series of frustrated texts cursing their insomnia, they decided to just meet at the lab and get some work done.

Especially when Barry was out of town, helping Team Arrow with some metahuman.

Caitlin was late and Cisco didn’t like it, didn’t like the way it made him worry and bite his fingernails anxiously.

When he finally heard the sound of the elevator dinging open, he breathed out a sigh of relief.

‘Oh thank god, what took you so long? I was getting worried.’

Caitlin didn’t answer, which made Cisco frown. Listening a bit more closely, he didn’t hear the usual pit-patter of Caitlin’s heels. Even if she wasn’t wearing heels, Cisco should have heard something, considering how silent the labs were.

He made his way slowly across the Cortex, picking up a large wrench, just in case it was some evil person, not Caitlin.

When he turned the corner, however, he quickly dropped the wrench, along with his heart and breath.

Caitlin was sitting upright, barely, letting the wall support her, because she was bleeding. Her hands were clasped over her stomach, and they were stained red. There were drops of blood dripping onto the shiny floor. There was a bruise forming on her cheek and one on her neck and she was crying silently.

She whispered his name, brokenly, and that was what made Cisco move, rushing to her side. Just in time, because as he wrapped his hands around her, Caitlin’s knees gave out. Cisco gently lowered both of them to the ground and managed to ask what happened.

‘Bullet’, Caitlin whispered, pushing her face into his neck. ‘Bullets.’

Cisco swore and promptly called 911.

Before the call went through, Caitlin closed her eyes. She was still breathing, but no matter how many times Cisco desperately said her name, she didn’t wake up.

‘Gunshot wound’, he managed to gasp to the operator that was still saying things in his ear. ‘My friend’s been shot, I don’t…’

He gently took Caitlin’s hands away from her stomach. The sight made him choke on a gasp, because while everything was covered in blood, he was still able to see the holes in her shirt.

‘Three bullets, in her stomach.’

‘Sir, I need you to give me an address.’

‘Star Labs.’

There was a pause. ‘I’ll send an ambulance.’

‘Okay’, Cisco took a few deep breaths. ‘But what do I do until then?’

‘Sir, I need you to stay calm.’

Cisco made an affronted sound. ‘I am calm, surprisingly calm, I might add, considering my best friend’s blood is under my nails and she’s not opening her eyes. Fuck.’

‘Sir, take a deep breath-‘

‘I’m calm’, he gritted out, totally not calm. ‘I also have a fully stocked med bay and basic medical training.’

Once again, there was a pause. ‘I’ll patch you in to the paramedics.’

Cisco didn’t even get to say ‘thank you’ before a strong male voice started asking questions.

No, Cisco didn’t know if the bullets hit any organs. Yes, he did know how to hook up an IV. Yes, he did know Caitlin’s blood type and yes, he did have some at hand. Yes, he could move her but Caitlin didn’t move patients until they were stabilized.

Still, the paramedic insisted he do so, so Cisco did. He picked Catilin up as gently as he could and he swallowed around the lump in his throat because it was a horrible, horrible sight, Caitlin limp in his arms, blood still dripping onto the floor.

But he couldn’t afford to be distracted by it. So he put her on the bed in the med bay, he cut open her shirt and he tried cleaning the wounds, but it was futile, they were still bleeding profoundly. Cisco swore, and so did the paramedic, but he still wrapped up the wound in gauze and focused on hooking Caitlin up with an IV.

The paramedics got there soon enough, and they didn’t do much to Caitlin, just took a proper look at the wound and injected her with several things, before wheeling her away. Cisco didn’t even think of not following.

They were half way through the drive to the hospital, he was sitting in the back of the ambulance with his hand wrapped tightly around Caitlin’s, hating everything, hating the world for being so dangerous, hating himself for being the one to suggest coming to the lab, hating Barry for being out of town, hating Caitlin for refusing to carry a gun.

‘Man’, one of the paramedics said, putting a hand on his shoulder and giving him a slightly wet towel. Cisco just stared at it, not comprehending.

‘Your hands are bloody and you’re crying.’, was all the paramedic said.

He was right, Cisco was crying. He didn’t even notice it before. He wordlessly took it and quickly wiped his face, halfheartedly scrubbing his fingers, before doing the same to Caitlin.

‘We’re gonna have to notify the cops’, the paramedic said next and Cisco managed to snap out of it for long enough to tell him Joe’s name and explain that he was a friend.

Then he went to holding Caitlin’s hand, and crying.

○⃝○

There was nothing Cisco could do but collapse in a chair on a hallway of the hospital, and wait for Caitlin to be out of surgery, wait to see… what happens.

That, and think. Cisco got to think a lot.

He knew he loved Caitlin, probably from the moment he shook her hand, that first day.

It took him a bit longer to actually fall in love with her.

Actually, a while longer. Cisco fell in love with Caitlin after Ronnie died, when he was helping her through her grief.

He felt horrible about it. He felt filthy and disgusted with himself, but at the same time, he felt like there was never a chance for a different outcome.

There was no possible scenario in which Cisco didn’t fall in love with Caitlin Snow.

And now, waiting in a brightly lit hallway for people in scrubs to come to him and say the word “alive”, only now did Cisco realize what this love really meant.

How much it meant, how much he loves her. It’s frightening, the desperation he’s feeling now, the anguish of the thought of having to live in a world without Caitlin, how much he could not bear the thought.

His entire life would crumble around him if Caitlin would be stolen from it. Cisco doesn’t think he could make it. He couldn’t breathe, he couldn’t think, he couldn’t smile, he couldn’t help Barry, he couldn’t, he wouldn’t even want to live in a world without Caitlin Snow in it.

And he wouldn’t have it any other way, really. He wouldn’t want not loving her.

○⃝○

Joe came with Iris, hugs and strong cups of coffee. Cisco didn’t say much, but they didn’t seem to expect that of him.

Iris started cleaning off his hands with wet wipes. He didn’t really have the strength to push her away.

○⃝○

The surgery took 5 hours that Cisco didn’t really feel pass. But Caitlin came out of it alright.

She’ll be fine, the doctors assured, the bullets didn’t hit anything too major, and while they feared her uterus was damaged, they had managed to fix it, and were confident in Caitlin’s ability to have children in the future.

Cisco cursed, because the thought didn’t even cross his mind.

But Caitlin was going to be okay. He kept repeating that in his mind.

○⃝○

She woke up a couple of hours later, gripping tightly to Cisco’s hand. She didn’t really talk to him, though. She talked to Joe, telling him exactly where the attack happened, so that he could check CCTV and catch the kids that did this.

They were just kids, Caitlin said. Kids who wanted money for drugs and booze. She was stupid, she fought them, and they shot her because they were afraid.

Just some kids, Cisco thought. He almost lost her because of just some stupid kids, not because of a metahuman or an alien or…

Just some stupid kids.

Caitlin fell asleep mid word, but Joe already got all he needed. He tried to get Cisco to go home and change. Iris tried to get him to go eat something. The doctors tried to get him to leave for whatever reason he saw fit.

Cisco didn’t move from the chair sat by Caitlin’s bed.

○⃝○

Barry stopped by next, around lunch time the next day. He forced Cisco to shower and change into some clean clothes. He also forced him to eat, but that was about it.

He had to go back to work, but he promised to be one phone call away.

○⃝○

Caitlin woke up late at night, and Cisco woke up to her saying his name.

She was smiling softly at him, hazy around the edges because of the drugs she was still on, but she was also tightly squeezing his hand, where it was still tucked against hers.

‘You scared me’, he whispered into the dark room and she started crying at that.

Cisco did his best, to shush her and to gently wipe away her tears, to tell her that she will be okay, that the doctors did their job and that everything will be back to normal in no time.

Caitlin managed to calm down and she clumsily pushed herself to one side of the bed, tugging on Cisco’s hand without actually saying anything.

Still, he understood, so he was quick to take off his shoes. It took a bit on maneuvering, to make himself fit in the small bed next to Caitlin without hurting her, but Cisco somehow managed it.

She didn’t let go of their clasped hands, letting both of them rest on her chest. Cisco was sitting on his side, other hand propping up his head so that he could look at Caitlin. She was still pale and she looked incredibly frail in the hospital bed, surrounded by all these tubes and beeping machines.

He kissed her forehead, gently and lingering, because she was safe and she was there and she was alive.

Caitlin hummed at that, an adorably contempt sound that made Cisco smile against her skin.

‘How’s your pain?’, he asked, still whispering.

She squeezed his fingers. ‘It still hurts, but it’s an expected pain level.’

‘Do you want me to get a nurse?’

That had her scoffing. ‘I don’t want you to ever leave this bed ever again.’

Cisco blinked, because it was said way too forcefully than it should have been.

Caitlin sighed next, turning to look at him with a surprisingly shy expression that had Cisco freezing.

‘I was gonna ask you out’, Caitlin said slowly, splotches of red coloring her pale cheeks. ‘For… real.’ She huffed, looking away from him. ‘Just my luck’, she was dripping sarcasm, ‘that I got shot before I got to do that.’

She wasn’t looking at him, and it was a good thing because Cisco’s face was probably doing something ridiculous. He was shocked, to say the least but… the truth was, he was so far gone for her, he never really had the time to entertain the thought of Caitlin feeling something for him as well.

‘I would have said yes’, Cisco finally said, his voice trembling just a little.

Caitlin looked up to him at that, smiling a bit, still red in the cheeks. ‘I kinda figured that out.’

She didn’t even sound smug about it. Well, not too much, but enough to make Cisco roll his eyes, in hopes of diffusing the tension.

‘Well the next time you feel like asking me out, maybe you won’t be bleeding in my arms, unresponsive.’

He couldn’t control the way his voice cracked.

‘You were scared’, Caitlin said, and she didn’t word it like a question, but it was one.

‘Terrified’, Cisco nodded.

Caitlin didn’t really say anything else, she just squeezed his fingers, again, bringing them briefly up to her lips, placing a soft kiss on his knuckles. When their hands were once again resting on her chest, she turned her head around, pressing her forehead to his cheek.

She couldn’t do much, hurt as she was, probably in a lot of pain. But it meant the world to Cisco, so he didn’t dare move a muscle or open his mouth in fright of saying something stupid. He started humming, though, softly under his breath, lullabies he barely remembered from his childhood, slowly but surely helping Caitlin fall back asleep.

○⃝○

Caitlin asked him out four months later.

They were in the Cortex, surrounded by people. Barry, Joe, Iris, Wally, even Felicity.

Still, Caitlin cornered him by his desk and casually asked if he had any plans for Friday night. He was working on something, only half paying attention to her, so he mumbled out an ‘of course not’, to which she responded by placing a hand on his shoulder, effectively drawing all his attention to her.

‘Dinner and a movie?’, she asked sweetly, cheeks bright red and small smile on her lips.

Cisco’s breath hitched. ‘Yeah’, he breathed. ‘Yeah, sure, I- I can’t wait.’

She left him to work soon after, but she threw him a smile over her shoulder that made his entire day easier.

○⃝○

When Caitlin kisses him in front of her apartment door late Friday night, Cisco doesn’t feel filthy anymore, for falling for Caitlin.

He is truly certain that there was no other way his life would have worked out. He is, however, incredibly thankful for the fact that Caitlin might just be falling for him as well. 


	14. Make it work

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Winn turns up in the Cortex with an unconscious Kara. Cisco finds himself… mildly infatuated.  
> [@brihildebrand](http://brihildebrand.tumblr.com/) promted it, [@ghostsships](http://ghostsships.tumblr.com/) made me dive head first into it. winnsco. winn x cisco.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More angsty than I thought it would be.  
> Also. Have you seen Supergirl? HAVE YOU SEEN MY DARLING PLAYING SUPERMAN?

Cisco was busy with Barry. The Flash was on the streets, currently trying to catch a couple of bank robbers who had a bunch of uber tuned up bikes. It was just him in the Cortex, having convinced Caitlin that he could handle it and that she could take the night off.

So Cisco was busy with Barry, focused on the monitor in front of him and his brain trying to think of ways for the Flash to cut off the robbers’ path. So he didn’t notice it, at first.

When he did notice it, he noticed that the Cortex was unnaturally cold, that he had goosebumps on the back of his neck and that there was an odd air current flowing around his knees.

‘Barry, take a sharp left in a mile. Should put you right in front of them. I have to check something.’

Cisco heard Barry protesting, but he ignored it, as he slowly turned his chair around. Just in time to see something rippling through the air, a bright blue flash of light that shimmered oddly gently.

Slowly, Cisco could see something forming inside of the light, a vague shape at first, but as it grew clearer and clearer, more visible, he could see that there were two people, one of them carrying the other.

When the silhouettes were at 100% opacity and when Cisco’s eyes finally were able to focus on them as the bright light disappeared, he gasped.

‘Who are you and what have you done to Kara?’

Because that was Kara, unconscious, into some strange man’s arms. Supergirl was carried by an … average looking guy, she didn’t even have her costume on and she looked very pale.

‘Is she dead?’, Cisco roared, self-preservation being the only reason he didn’t approach the new arrivals.

Well, self-preservation and the odd piece of tech the guy had on his temple, something Cisco didn’t recognize.

‘You’re Cisco, right?’, the guy said.

‘How do you know my name?’

‘Kara told me, she told me everything that happened the last time she was here. I’m Winn.’

Cisco recognized the name, from the story Barry told them a while back, when The Flash first met Supergirl on her Earth. He couldn’t trust the guy, though, not until Barry saw him. Still…

‘What happened to Kara?’

The guy, Winn, let out a shaky breath. ‘She’s been in a coma for nine months. We’ve done everything we could on our Earth… You’re out last hope.’

Cisco cursed under his breath, then he cursed out loud for good measure. Then he clicked on his ear piece.

‘Barry, as soon as you’re done with the robbers, I need you to come back here. And pick Caitlin up on the way.’

‘What happened?’, Barry asked. ‘I thought we gave Caitlin the night off.'

'We did. But that was before Supergirl turned up unconscious in the Cortex.’

There was a pause from Barry’s side. ‘I’m on my way.’

Cisco sighed in sync with Barry turning off his comm., and he turned to Winn.

‘Let’s get her to the med bay. I’ll start… hooking her up to the machines until our doc gets here.’

‘Lead the way’, Winn said. ‘Also, for your information, Clark’s going to be here in a bit. He had to pick something up.’

‘Who’s Clark?’, Cisco frowned, making Winn blink a few times.

‘Right, you don’t…’, he shook his head . ‘Kara’s cousin, fellow alien. He goes by Superman.’

‘Man, I could’ve come up with better names’, Cisco couldn’t help but point out, making Winn frown at him.

They were silent as he gently placed Kara on a bed, and Cisco started hooking her up to the basic vitals machine and on an IV, for good measure.

When Barry turned up, he was carrying Caitlin, much to her displeasure. It was clear she left home in a hurry, because she was wearing jeans and one of Cisco’s old tshirts.

‘Winn!’, Barry said when he saw the other man. They hugged quickly, but Barry’s smile fell when his eyes fell on Kara.

He whined and took her hand. ‘What happened?’

‘It’s complicated’, Winn sighed, rubbing at his eyes.

Cisco took a moment to look at him. He was an okay looking guy, Cisco thought, but he looked … rumpled. There were dark circles under his eyes, his hair looked tangled and while his clothes were clean and ironed, his tie was crooked.

‘Look’, Winn said, ‘Clark is going to be here soon. He’s Kara’s cousin’, he explained before Barry could ask, ‘alien, Superman, he’s been Superman for longer than Kara’s been Supergirl, and he knows more about’, he waved his hands over Kara’s body, ‘their anatomy. He’s brining files.’

He turned to Caitlin. ‘I’m Winn, by the way. Winn Schott.’

‘Caitlin Snow’, she shook his hand, looking a little wide eyes. ‘Aliens, okay. I can do aliens, sure. No big deal.’

Cisco snorted, making her turn to him.

‘Coffee, Cisco’, Caitlin said strongly. ‘We need coffee.’

He threw her a mild glare, but started making his way towards the kitchen. He was stopped, though, by a guy standing in the doorway to the medbay.

He was gorgeous, really, with a perfect face and marvelous hair and Cisco had to take a moment to remember to breathe.

‘I’m Clark’, the man said, and even his voice was perfect. He looked at the room for a beat before his eyes landed on Cisco.

‘Are you Barry?’

Cisco didn’t manage to say anything. Barry took over, thankfully, introducing himself and Caitlin and Cisco, and Clark smiled politely.

‘So what happened?’, Barry asked. ‘Winn hasn’t said much.’

Clark sighed. ‘We don’t have a lot of weaknesses. But the one that we do have, it can do a lot of damage. The planet we come from, it’s called Krypton, and there’s a mineral, called Kryptonite. It hurts us. A lot.’

‘So Kara was exposed to this Kryptonite?’, Caitlin asked.

Clark nodded. ‘There was an alien that Kara fought, he injected her with something. Some sort of compound derived from Kryptonite. It’s out of her system, has been for months. But she still… won’t wake up.’

‘I’m going to need to see the compound.’, Caitlin said, straightening her shoulders. ‘Did you bring files?'

Clark pulled out a flash drive from his pocket. ‘You guys have USB here, right?’

Cisco snorted, but followed everyone back to the Cortex.

As Caitlin started reading the files‚ he knew they lost her for the next hour or so.

'Hey‚ how did you guys get here?'‚ he asked after a half hour of Barry and Clark talking in low voices and Winn looking around, wide eyed.

'I flew really fast'‚ Clark raised an amused eyebrow.

Cisco turned to Winn. 'Do you have superspeed too?'

'No'‚ Winn smiled. 'I'm just a plain old human‚ man. But after Barry visited, the DEO, which is our local, super secret branch of the government that deals with aliens, they wanted to develop something that could make anyone jump through universes.’

‘Your skull piece?’, Cisco waved at his own temple.

Winn nodded, taking it off. ‘It taps into the brain to figure out _which_ universe you want to go to, you have to think really hard on it. And then, it… vibrates. I uh’, he shook his head, ‘Physics was always a hobby, I’m just an IT guy. I don’t understand it all.’

Cisco’s eyebrows were high on his forehead, suddenly excited. ‘Could I have a look at it?’

‘Of course.’, Winn nodded. ‘I brought you one, thought you’d appreciate it.’

‘Dude’, Cisco said, with feeling.

‘Thanks, man’, Barry clapped on Winn’s shoulder.

‘And what did J'onn have to say to that?’, Clark frowned at Winn.

‘What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him’, came the prompt response, which made Clark roll his eyes.

‘I like you’, Cisco grinned. ‘My type of guy.’

Winn blushed, quite adorably, making Cisco grin even wider.

‘It’s no big deal’, he shook his head. ‘I mean, we already knew Barry was cool. And Kara talked a lot, and I mean _a lot_ , about how cool everyone here was. I’d be nice to be able to… you know… actually _interact_.’

‘Hey, I just thought of something’, Barry turned to Clark. ‘Don’t you need to go back? Won’t they need you?’

Clark raised a surprisingly condescending eyebrow. ‘What, like you’re the only superhero running around here?’

‘Fair point’, Barry smirked.

‘I’m gonna want to hear all about that, at some point’, Clark said next.

‘Only if you tell me about yours’, Barry kept on smirking.

Winn was suddenly speaking in Cisco’s ear. ‘Do all superheroes flirt when they meet?’

‘You don’t know the half of it.’, Cisco didn’t miss a beat. ‘And it’s hilarious, cause Barry’s straight and has no idea he’s doing it.’

Winn snickered at that and Cisco joined in, before Caitlin cut them off.

‘Clark, is there any way you can get me some Kryptonite?’

He nodded. ‘I brought some.’

‘Good’, Caitlin’s eyes were sparkling. ‘Gimme and stay away from it. Cisco, I’m going to need you to look where in Central City we can get some Promethium, then Barry, I’m going to need you to steal it. Winn-’, Caitlin faltered.

‘I’ll just sit here and look pretty?’, he raised an eyebrow.

She tilted her head. ‘I was going to say go get some sleep, because you look very much not pretty.’

‘Thanks’, Winn rolled his eyes. ‘Just what a guy wants to hear.’

‘She’s not wrong’, Clark told Winn gently. ‘It’s been a long nine months.’

‘I’ll sleep when she wakes up’, Winn said without hesitation, before turning around to Cisco. ‘I can help you hack things.’

‘Well, you can keep me company’, Cisco tilted his head. ‘I’ll allow that.’

Oh god, he was doing it now. Stupidly flirting with other… sidekicks. Well, Cisco will have to rein that down, if Winn and Clark were going to be here for a while.

And by the look in Caitlin’s eyes, yes they were.

͟ \͞ 

It was very early in the morning when Barry came back with the stolen Promethium.

‘How will this help?’, Clark asked.

‘In order to make an antidote’, Caitlin started, ‘you usually need to start from the poison.’

‘That’s why you need the Kryptonite.’

‘Yes. And the Promethium will counteract the other composites that Kara was injected with. I think.’

‘You think’, Clark blinked.

‘I’m mostly sure’, Caitlin admitted. ‘It should work, but it’s going to take a long time for me to make the antidote.’

‘How long?’

‘A few weeks.’

Clark sighed, deeply.

‘Look, man’, Barry started. ‘She’s in good hands here, I promise.’

‘I know, I just-‘

‘I’ll stay’, Winn interrupted, looking at Clark. ‘Go home, our Earth needs its Superman. I’ll stay here with Kara. Stop by when you have a chance’, he smiled.

Clark still looked unconvinced.

‘She’s safe here’, Winn insisted. ‘The Flash will keep her safe and I’ll keep her company.’

‘What about you?’, Clark countered. ‘What about your life, your job?’

‘J'onn knows where I am, it’s no problem.’

‘Are you sure?’, Clark asked slowly.

‘I love her just as much as you do’, Winn smiled. ‘Now go home and make sure we have one to come back to.’

‘We’ll uh… call if we need anything’, Caitlin said. ‘I might have more questions.’

‘Thank you for this’, Clark smiled at her. ‘I … appreciate it a lot.’

‘We love Kara too, you know’, Caitlin smiled fondly. ‘She left an impression.’

‘She tends to do that, yeah’, Clark nodded. He shook Barry and Cisco’s hands, hugged Winn, and then he was off.

‘It’s gonna be a long day, isn’t it?’, Cisco sighed.

‘You guys can go home’, Caitlin shook her head. ‘You can’t help me with anything now anyway.’

‘I’d rather stay here’, Winn said. ‘Even after you all leave, I mean. I won’t touch anything, promise.’

‘And this’, Caitlin said, triumphant, ‘is why I insisted we set up those guest rooms.’

‘You can choose from the obnoxiously blue themed one’, Cisco told Winn, ‘or the girly mint green one.’

‘Obnoxious blue it is, then.’

Cisco wanted to say it again, _my type of guy_ , but he bit on his lip to keep from doing so. Instead, he smiled at Winn and offered a tour of Star Labs.

͟ \͞ 

Cisco went home and slept for a couple of hours, but he made his way back to Star Labs a little after noon. He was the first one there, except for Winn.

He found the other man in the Cortex, and because Winn hadn’t heard him come in, Cisco took a few moments to look at him.

Winn was sitting at a computer, one foot tucked under his butt, a mug in one hand and the mouse in another. He was wearing plaid pajama pants and a shirt that looked very old, and it was clear that he hadn’t combed his hair yet.

He looked… comfy. In the middle of the Cortex, on an Earth that wasn’t his.

And he was reading the Wikipedia page on Oliver’s nighttime persona.

‘So I’m guessing you don’t have the Green Arrow on your Earth?’, Cisco casually asked, finally walking inside of the Cortex.

Winn startled, jumping two feet in the air with a yelp.

‘Please don’t do that’, he all but whimpered, settling back on the chair. ‘My poor heart can’t take any more heart attacks.’

‘Had a lot of those, have you?’, Cisco raised an eyebrow.

 Winn’s eyes went to the opening to the med lab.

‘Yeah’, was all he said, still staring at Kara.

This up close, Cisco could see that Winn still had dark circles under his beautiful green eyes and that his lips were chapped.

'Dude, did you eat anything since we left last night?’

Winn turned to look at him. ‘There isn’t any food in the kitchen. I mean in the small cupboard you guys turned into a kitchen.’

Cisco was horrified to realize that Winn was right.

‘Get dressed’, he finally said. ‘Lunch is on me.’

Winn’s eyes went to Kara. ‘I’d rather-‘

‘I’ll call Barry’, Cisco interrupted. ‘He’ll stay with Kara while we put some food in you. Come on, chop chop, why aren’t you moving already?’

Winn did move. Albeit slowly, but he did move.

͟ \͞ 

‘This doesn’t look too weird’, Winn said half way to Jitters, eyes roaming down the streets and up the buildings.

'Barry said our Earths were pretty similar’, Cisco nodded.

'Yeah, from what I’ve seen, the main history events are still the same’, Winn went on. ‘The cities are mostly the same, the bills are the same, so yay!, I have money. And-‘

‘Did you spend all morning reading Wikipedia?’, Cisco raised an eyebrow.

Winn winced. ‘All night, actually. I haven’t slept that much.’

Cisco sighed, but Caitlin was the mom of the group, so he had no business questioning Winn’s poor life choices.

‘At least tell me you googled yourself', Cisco finally said, making Winn smirk.

‘There is no Winn Schott on this Earth. There is a Clark Kent, but he’s a police deputy in a town in South California, and there’s no Kara Danvers, so I think it’s safe to assume you guys don’t have aliens. Yet, at least.’

‘That’s a terrifying thought’, Cisco pulled a face.

‘Yeah, I gathered you have your hands full.’

Cisco just nodded at that.

‘Maybe you could tell me’, Winn said after a while. ‘Looks like I’ll be here a while, I wouldn’t mind hearing about your adventures.’

Oh‚ now Winn was doing it. Flirting without realizing it. Cisco really needed to think twice before he spoke.

'Sure. But first, food.’

With that, they went into Jitters. Winn ordered two cronuts and a Flash coffee, snickering all the while.

‘Cisco’, a sweet voice said behind his back, ‘since when do you go on lunch dates?’

Damn it, Iris.

‘Iris’, he turned around, smiling sweetly, ‘thank you for pointing out my depressingly empty love life.’

Iris looked from him to Winn a couple of times. She didn’t even look apologetic.

‘Iris, meet Winn’, Cisco sighed. ‘He’s … Kara’s friend.’

Her eyes instantly went wide. ‘Uh, you mean-‘

‘Yup’, Winn nodded. ‘I’m human, though’, he whispered, making Iris nod.

‘Kara’s not feeling very well’, Cisco went on, ‘so they came over to have Caitlin take a look at her. It’ll take a while.’

‘Oh no’, Iris frowned, looking very sad.

‘Wow’, Winn blinked, ‘you people really do care for her.’

‘She left an impression’, Iris smiled, before her phone rang. She left quickly with a promise to stop by the lab later in the day.

Winn was completely silent as he ate his cronuts and he didn’t say one word as they made their way back to Star Labs. Once there, he said a polite hello to Caitlin and went straight to Kara’s bedside.

By the time Cisco left for the night, Winn was still there.

͟ \͞ 

Cisco was late for work the next morning, but considering he came in with his hands filled with groceries, nobody yelled at him for it.

Winn thanked him, though, and helped him put everything away. Everything, except for the vanilla icecream, which he ate happily while listening to Barry talk about a new metahuman that was wrecking havoc in town.

It was a man who could grow roots from the ground, giant roots that Barry wasn’t successful in bypassing.

'So if you can't get to the man because of the roots‚ we have to think of a way for you to get through the… foliage.’, Cisco concluded.

‘Well that’s easy, isn’t it?’, Winn said mildly, making everyone turn to look at him. ‘I mean, a herbicide could work, right?’

‘Winn’, Barry said with wide eyes, ‘that’s genius.’ He turned to Caitlin. ‘Could it work?’

‘I don’t know’, she frowned. ‘Are we sure they are real … I mean, the roots are real roots or…’

‘I got a sample’, Barry said quickly. ‘At the lab, I’ll be right back.’

He left in a whoosh, and Caitlin and Cisco barely got to settle their hair back before Barry was back.

It took a couple of minutes, but Caitlin said there was more tree DNA in the roots than human one, so a high grade herbicide could work.’

‘Can you modify the cold gun?’, Barry turned to Cisco.

‘Sure’, he nodded, but couldn’t help but glare at Winn a bit.

Jealousy didn’t sit well in Cisco’s stomach, so he willed it down.

‘Sure’, he smiled at Winn. ‘Good idea, man.’

Winn was frowning‚ but he didn’t say anything else.

Barry stopped the metahuman with a roughly modified version of the cold gun‚ and when the man went down, Cisco’s eyes were on Winn. He grinned, bouncing on the soles of his feet a couple of times.

Winn looked almost happy, and it was a good look on him.

But Cisco saw the moment his smile fell, the moment his eyes went to the door of the med bay, where Kara still slept. The pain in Winn’s eyes, the desperation and maybe guilt.

It was clear, in Cisco’s eyes, that there wasn’t anyone in the world Winn cared for as much as he cared for Kara. What happened to her was clearly destroying him, has been for the past nine months. He put up a good front, most of the time, but sometimes the mask cracked.

Even if Cisco only met him three days ago, he understood Winn.

As he wordlessly made his way to Kara’s bedside, Cisco shared a look with Caitlin. She understood too‚ and it only made her determination to wake Kara go up a notch.

͟ \͞ 

Two nights later‚ Cisco found out about The Flash breaking into an office building and stopping a bunch of nasty guys from all but bringing down the Central City stock market.

He wouldn’t have had a problem with any of it, if it wasn’t for two things. One, the fact that Cisco found out while he was watching the news in his underwear on his couch and secondly, the fact that Cisco knew that Barry couldn’t have done it on his own.

Of course, Winn was there when he got to the Cortex. He was still typing on the computer, as Barry was laughing about something, still in his Flash suit.

‘Why didn’t you call?’, Cisco couldn’t keep the anger out of his voice.

Barry frowned. ‘I thought you were asleep, dude. Plus, Winn was here. Turns out, hacking is the same on both of our Earths.’

‘Great’, Cisco drawled out, before realizing that he was being ridiculous and that his anger towards Barry and Winn was unjustified. The Flash saved the day‚ it shouldn’t matter than Cisco wasn’t there to help him.

He shook his head and rolled his eyes at himself, before turning around and running out of there. He needed some air.

Ending up on the roof, Cisco spent a few minutes at the edge of the building, willing his anger down. He didn’t understand why he reacted this badly, this really wasn’t like him.

When the door to the rooftop opened a few minutes later, Cisco expected to see Barry. But he didn’t, he saw Winn.

With his hands in his pockets, looking apologetic.

‘I screwed up’, he said.

‘You didn’t’, Cisco shook his head. ‘I overreacted, it was stupid of me. My insomnia’s acting up.’

Winn smiled a bit and stepped forward, until he was side by side with Cisco.

‘I know the feeling’, he started gently, ‘thinking you’re being replaced. I can’t even begin to explain how much that is not happening.’

That cut close to home, so Cisco willed himself to stay silent.

‘I’m useless’, Winn said next. ‘Caitlin is doing everything for Kara now, and I can’t do anything for her. Back home, I worked at the DEO and I helped the world know what was happening with Supergirl. Here, I’m just… twiddling my thumbs. It’s an awful feeling.’

‘I know’, Cisco whispered. ‘You did the right thing tonight. I’m sorry I-‘

Winn shook his head, cutting him off. When he didn’t say anything more, Cisco turned to face him fully.

‘These superheroes, man. No matter how much we care for them, we can’t always help. It’s their choice, going into the line of fire, and they do it knowingly, knowing that they might not come back.’

‘I had hope’, Winn said. ‘All these months, I had hope. But it’s been hard’, he breathed out shakily, ‘and it … She was my hope. Since I met her, Kara has always been my hope. And not having her here…’

‘You don’t know Caitlin’, Cisco said urgently. ‘She’s so brilliant, I have seen her do these things, these impossible things. And I know you said we’re your last hope, and I’m telling you that if anyone can do it, it’ll be Caitlin.’

Winn nodded at that. ‘If it works, we’re going to owe you a lot of things.’

Cisco snorted. ‘And don’t you forget that, baby.’

Winn pulled a face, making Cisco laughs.

‘I’m sorry I’ve been an asshole’, Cisco said.

‘It’s all right’, Winn shrugged. ‘I’m sure I’ll return the favor someday.’

‘Sure, sure’, Cisco nodded, fighting back a smile. ‘But for now, how about we go guilt trip Barry into a coffee run?’

‘Donuts’, Winn’s eyes grew wide. ‘Coffee and donuts.’

My type of guy, Cisco thought again. And again, he bit on his tongue to keep from saying it.

͟ \͞ 

They got a new visitor two days later. Alex Danvers was Kara’s sister, a bio-engineer who could keep up with Caitlin’s babble and, from what he's heard from Winn, she could easily kick ass.

She was also incredibly beautiful.

Watching her and Caitlin talk shop about the treatment Kara was going through‚ Cisco felt a little overwhelmed and a lot intimidated.

In need to escape, he slowly made his way to Kara’s bedside, where Winn already was.

‘After two years of dealing with various superheroes and their friends, you’d think I’d get used to how incredibly attractive they all are.’

Winn laughed loudly at that. He looked to Cisco, but didn’t let go of Kara’s hand. After he calmed down, he threw Cisco a look.

‘None of them can get on Clark’s level, though.’

Cisco thought about Clark. About Oliver and Digg, Roy, Thea, Laurel, Felicity, Ray, Sara.

‘You’re right’, he whispered. ‘You’re absolutely right.’

‘And I don’t know about your superheroes’, Winn seemed highly amused, ‘but the ones I know are kind of _terrible_ with their love lives… it’s really a blow to your self-confidence, you know?’

Cisco thought about the time they went on a pool day vacation, to Barry blushing all the way down to his chest when Iris turned up in her swimsuit.

And then he thought about Lisa Snart, however brief that was.

‘I don’t know man, it kinda boosts my confidence’, he admitted.

‘Teach me your ways, master’, Winn said, making Cisco frown.

‘You don’t need it anymore, do you? I mean, you and Kara-‘

Winn smiled and shook his head. ‘It’s not like that’.

Cisco raised a very disbelieving eyebrow.

'Don’t get me wrong'‚ Winn went on‚ 'I have loved Kara since the moment I met her and I’ve been in love with her for a long while. But it’s not like that anymore.'

'You don’t sound so convinced‚ man'‚ Cisco pointed out, because Winn really didn’t. Not when he was looking so softly at Kara, not when he was gripping her hand tightly.

‘I was the first person she told, you know’, Winn said around a smile. ‘Alex and the DEO knew from the moment she landed, James knew from Clark. But I’m the first one _she_ told. When she decided on becoming Supergirl, she told me.’

‘So she loves you too, is what you’re saying’, Cisco’s eyebrows were both frowned and raised.

‘Yup’, Winn grinned. 'I'm her best friend, but that’s all I’ll ever be.’

Cisco still wasn’t convinced, and Winn must have seen it, because he rolled his eyes and told him to stop.

'Okay'‚ Cisco blinked before shaking himself. 'Well what about your love life‚ then?'

Winn winced with his entire body. 'The last person I kind of dated turned out to be a banshee with supersonic screams, those were very painful. Not only did she try to kill me, she tried to kill Supergirl and a whole bunch of other people as well. Barry might have told you about her. ’

Cisco wasn’t that impressed. ‘The last person I almost dated turned out to be an evil villain that forced me to make her a pretty deadly gold gun.’

‘Okay then’, Winn nodded.  He wanted to say something else, but Alex came into the room.

She kissed Winn’s forehead and asked how he was holding up.

Surprisingly‚ Winn spared a glance at Cisco before answering.

‘Better than I thought.’

‘Caitlin is amazing’, Alex said next. ‘I’m very hopeful that what she’s doing will wake Kara.’

‘How much longer?'‚ Winn asked.

'About two weeks.'

Both their morale was suddenly to the floor‚ so Cisco scrambled through Caitlin’s drawers until he found what he was looking for, successfully brandishing the hair brush.

He gave it to Alex. ‘I’m sure Kara would hate it if her hair’s a tangled mess when she wakes up.’

‘How thoughtful’, Alex smiled, taking the brush.

Cisco took his leave, but spared a second to look at the smile on Winn’s face, and the way his eyes tracked Cisco’s exit.

Well. He didn’t know what to think about that.

͟ \͞ 

Winn all but told him what to think about that the next day.

Oliver and Felicity were in town for reasons Cisco didn’t bother remembering. Truthfully, he was too busy laughing at Winn.

Winn, who was in a corner of the Cortex, staring at the Green Arrow and Overwatch. His jaw was dropped, his eyes were wide and he was blinking very slowly.

Cisco made his way to Winn’s side, bumping their shoulders together.

‘Snap out of it’, he whispered. ‘They’re just people, you know.’

‘This would be a lot easier’, Winn gulped, ‘if I were just straight.’

It was Cisco’s turn to have his jaw on the floor.

‘Well’, he said diplomatically, ‘then we’d just be drooling over Felicity and Caitlin.’

Winn’s head turned to him. ‘ _We_?’

Cisco still didn’t know what to think about Winn, or what to say now, if he should take it back or not. So Cisco shrugged and got out of there, making his way to Oliver and Felicity’s sides.

At least they were the ridiculously attractive devils he knew.

͟ \͞ 

A few days later, Cisco had spent the evening eating pizza and watching Star Wars with Winn. It was a nice evening, that would have felt a little bit like a date if Cisco didn’t know it wasn’t.

But Winn was a type of person that pushed all of Cisco’s right buttons, and not necessarily in a romantic way. Winn was smart as hell and his jokes always made Cisco laugh. They liked the same things, from their love for computers to sweet coffee and their superheroes. If not anything else‚ Winn could be a good friend to Cisco and he was enjoying discovering the possibility of it.

He was just about to walk out of Star Labs and head home when the door closed in his face and red lights started flashing, along with an obnoxious alarm.

Cisco ran back to the Cortex, because a lock down was not scheduled.

For a second‚ Cisco thought that Winn might have triggered it, but when he found the guy clutching to his ears and all but shielding Kara with his body, Cisco realized he wasn’t at fault.

He stopped the alarm and ran a quick diagnostic to the system.

‘We’re on lockdown’, Cisco told Winn. ‘No idea why, there’s a glitch in the-‘

‘Cisco’, Winn said urgently. ‘Look at the tv.’

Cisco did, and paled.

The news was saying that in an odd glitch of security, there were 15 buildings across Central City that were currently on lockdown. Star Labs, the Police station, a couple of malls and office buildings.

‘Call Caitlin’, Cisco told Winn. ‘I’ll call Barry.’

Barry was locked in the Police station, and Caitlin was thankfully, safe at home.

‘What’s happening?’, Winn asked in a small voice.

‘I don’t know, man, but-‘

Cisco cut himself off with a gasp.

'What?', Winn was anxious. ‘Cisco, what?’

He called Barry, but looked to Winn as he was answering.

‘There’s no glitch. The buildings are on lockdown because there are bombs planted in them.’

‘What?’, Barry breathed out at the same time Winn did.

‘Barry’, Cisco said strongly. ‘The bomb here is on the roof, so I can’t get to it.’

‘I can’, he said quickly. ‘I can phase through-‘

‘No, just go to the Police station basement. I need eyes on it, okay? You’ll be my eyes. Winn?’

‘Yeah’, he straightened his shoulder. ‘How can I help?’

‘Get into the Star Labs mainframe, find how it got hacked and … trace it?’

Winn nodded strongly, getting to work.

‘Cisco, I’m here’, Barry turned on video call, just as Winn said ‘They’re all connected.’

‘I can’t get in’, Winn was obviously panicking. ‘They’re all connected, if one goes off they all will and I can’t get in, it’s-‘

‘Okay’, Cisco yelled. ‘If we disarm one, we disarm all of them, right?’

‘Yeah’, Winn blinked, ‘but we can’t do that remotely!’

‘Barry! Get a laptop and I’ll talk you through hooking it up to the bomb and diffusing it.’

‘Cisco, I can’t keep this from the Police, not when the bomb is in our back yard.’

‘Fine, then get your on-call hacker guy and the best laptop you can find and I’ll walk him through everything.’

Sooner than Cisco thought possible, when the timer on the bombs showed 9 minutes left till detonation, he was talking the Police’s guy through hacking his way into a very complicated designed bomb.

‘This is not working’, Winn was saying, unhelpfully.

Cisco may have yelled at him to shut up. And then he might have yelled at the guy on the phone to type faster.

But it worked. In the end, it work, the bomb was disarmed with barely a minute to spare, and so were the other bombs.

‘Boo-yah!’, Cisco yelled in relief.

'There's a bomb squad on the way'‚ Barry said. 'They still have to remove all the bombs. ’

‘I’ll wait downstairs’, Cisco was already half way out the door.

Barry hung up quickly‚ but Winn stopped Cisco from walking out of the Cortex.

His hands were on Cisco’s shoulders and he looked concerned.

‘You’re shaking’, Winn said gently and damn it, he was right.

Cisco pushed him away and shook his head. ‘I’ll be fine, I just need to take care of this.’

He walked out without looking at Winn again.

͟ \͞ 

It took almost an hour for the bomb squad to be done, and Cisco was positively exhausted by the time he made his way back into the Cortex.

Caitlin pounced on him, hugging him tightly and babbling in his ear, about how he didn’t call and she was so worried and-

‘I can’t believe you called her’, Cisco glared at Winn.

He didn’t look regretful. ‘I just thought you shouldn’t be alone after a night like this.’

Cisco couldn’t help but scoff. ‘You didn’t have to get her to come all the way here. You could’ve just spend the night with me!’

He didn’t even realize how that sounded only after Winn blushed.

‘Flirting, you see’, Caitlin said mildly, ‘is a symptom Cisco shows when he’s in shock.’

‘I do not!’, he yelled.

Caitlin just threw him an all-knowing look. Well, she may be wrong, but at least she gave him a plausible excuse for flirting with Winn.

He’ll take it.

‘So sleepover at my place, then?’

Caitlin grinned, Winn snickered, and Cisco sighed.

͟ \͞ 

On the two week mark of Kara and Winn being there‚ James came to visit. He hugged Winn tightly, for a long while, and he was smiling as Caitlin and Cisco introduced themselves. He was bummed that Barry was stuck at work, but they all knew James wasn’t here for that.

Winn took him to Kara in the med bay and left him alone, closing the door behind him. He didn’t look as happy now as he was when James first came over.

‘How about you guys go out for lunch?’, Caitlin said, checking her watch. ‘Well, an early dinner. I still have some work to do and Barry said he’d stop by after work.’

It was clear that James wasn’t going to leave anytime soon, and Cisco thought Winn needed a pick me up.

‘I could go for a drink or two’, he told him. ‘But you might wanna change before that.’

Winn was wearing sweatpants and a hoodie, which was perfectly acceptable inside the Cortex‚ but not so much for the bar Cisco had in mind.

'Okay'‚ Winn smiled at him. 'I’ll be right back.'

Cisco watched him walk out‚ his eyes only straying to his ass for a couple of seconds. When Winn was out of his sight and Cisco turned around‚ Caitlin was watching him with a raised eyebrow.

'What?'‚ he bristled. 'This was your idea.'

'Yes‚ cause you have a crush and I know you won't act on it anytime soon.'

Cisco glared. 'I do not have a crush.'

He was lying. He was definitely lying‚ terribly so.

And Caitlin wasn’t buying it. 'Oh so it’s more than a crush, then?’

Cisco didn’t dignify that with an answer, grabbing his jacket and walking out of there. He still heard Caitlin snickering.

͟ \͞ 

The bar Cisco took them to was one of his favorites, because of the cozy atmosphere and the not too loud music. Winn seemed to like it as well, cause he was smiling as they sat down on the side of the bar and ordered some beer.

‘So’, Winn said after a sip. ‘It seems like you’re always the one who ends up babysitting me.’

Cisco rolled his eyes. ‘You don’t need babysitting.’

He relented, when Winn threw him a look. ‘Alright, fine, but I mean, you’re a cool guy.’

‘Nobody has ever called me cool’, Winn laughed.

‘You’re cool to me’, Cisco insisted, grinning. ‘And not just cause you’re from another Earth, or cause you work for a super secret government agency that works with aliens, and not even because you’re best friends with one of them.’

‘Why, then?’, Winn grinned.

‘Cause you don’t judge me for my daily intake of sugar and you know the difference between white hat hacking and black hat hacking.'

Winn hummed at that. ‘That’s all?’

Cisco didn’t answer, he couldn’t without making a fool of himself. So he drank most of his beer and changed the subject to something a lot safer.

‘So what’s the most ridiculous thing Kara has had to do since she became Supergirl?’

Winn kept looking into his eyes for a couple of beats, but then he laughed, finally looking away and telling stories of pet boas names Fluffy and Ikea tables.

They talked easily as they drank three beers, and they had both loosed up. They were laughing and teasing, but as they grabbed their fourth beer, Winn sobered up.

‘Hey, so’, he said hesitantly, ‘I don’t know about you, but I don’t usually do this.’, he waved his hands between them.

‘Do what?’, Cisco frowned. ‘Have a drink with a friend?’

‘That’s just the thing, though.’, Winn said strongly. 'You _are_ my friend. And it’s weird, cause I’ve only known you for two weeks but it’s just so… easy, to tell you things. You know about Kara and about my dad and… That’s... I don’t do that, okay? I don’t open up so easily.’

‘You say that like it’s some… bad thing’, Cisco shrugged. ‘You’re angry.’

‘Not angry’, Winn sighed. ‘Just… confused.’

Cisco took a few seconds to gather his thoughts, but then he smiled at Winn and knocked their shoulders together.

‘I get it. It took me a long while for me to open up to Caitlin and Barry. About things that matter, you know. But after I did that, it’s been easier. And I… I have a theory.’

Winn raised his eyebrows. ‘Of course you do.’

‘We live a dangerous life, man’, Cisco takes a large swing of his beer. ‘The world is dangerous, even without us working side by side our superheroes. But we still throw ourselves head in, out of love for Barry and Kara, yeah, but not just that.’

‘No, not just that’, Winn nodded.

‘Right, so’, Cisco clapped his shoulder. ‘Life’s short and we’ve learned that the hard way. So I think it’s normal for us to… not think so much about certain things.’

Winn tilted his head. ‘I guess that sounds plausible.’

Cisco grinned.

‘So, to test this theory’, Winn lowered his voice and bend his upper body closer. ‘If I’d ask if you and Caitlin ever had a thing, would you answer?’

Cisco laughed. ‘Really? Caitlin and I?’

Winn just raised an eyebrow.

‘I didn’t think I’d be visible anymore’, Cisco admitted. ‘I mean, I’ve thought about it, but Caitlin’s heart has been broken too many times for me to do it again.’

Winn didn’t know about Caitlin’s history, but he nodded nonetheless.

‘Plus’, Cisco went on, ‘workplace relationships are weird.’

‘Oh yeah’, Winn was quick to nod. ‘Totally.’

He paused for a second. ‘But it’s not like we have the time for anything else.’

Cisco had to admit he was right, but didn’t say so.

‘We sure do spend a lot of time talking about our inexistent love lives’, he pointed out.

Winn snorted. ‘Would you rather I talk about my crippling fear of Kara not waking up? Or maybe you want to talk about the fact that you’re clearly still insecure about your position on the team.’

Cisco’s anger spiked, but not as much as he expected.

‘How about we switch to tequila and we talk about my superpower?’

Winn’s jaw dropped. ‘I didn’t know you have a superpower.’

Cisco smirked, slowly. ‘Well are you down for tequila?'

Winn nodded, a little wide eyed, so Cisco ordered their shots and took his time, cause he enjoyed to see Winn unravel, slowly but surely.

‘Come on!’, Winn finally said. ‘You’re killing me here.’

Cisco snickered. ‘Ok, so. Multiverse. Universes vibrating on a different frequence.'

Winn nodded‚ clearly impatient.

‘I can… see through those vibrations.’

‘I don’t’, Winn was blinking quickly. ‘I don’t understand.’

Cisco took a deep breath and extended his hand. 'It won’t hurt’, he said when Winn seemed dubious. ‘Promise.’

He relented, and even thought Cisco was expecting it, he still flinched when Winn's fingers touched his.

Cisco saw a kid that had Winn's green eyes‚ in a workshop with a man that must have been his dad‚ because they were working together on a toy.

‘Uh, dad!’, Winn seemed excited. ‘What if you put the speaker in the head‚ not in the tummy? The clothes won’t muffle it like that.'

The older man smiled gently. ‘That’s a great idea, son.’

Little Winn grinned wildly.

Then the scene changed, and Cisco saw Winn as he knew him now, strapped to a chair. His father was saying how they were alike, and Cisco could sense how afraid Winn was.

The scene changed again, and Winn was aiming a toy gun to some guy’s head, scared and disappointed, but most of all, angry. He didn’t shoot the guy, and then Kara was there, Supergirl saving the day.

Cisco saw Winn with Kara next, and he knew, somehow, that it was the same day. He heard the beautiful things Kara was saying to him, but he knew Winn wasn’t really registering it all, too focused on the feel of her hands over his and the wild beat of his heart.

When he kissed her, Cisco felt Winn’s joy in that moment, but it was quickly replaced with incredible heartbreak and disappointment in himself‚ for doing it even though he knew she didn’t want it.

The scene changed one last time, and Cisco saw Winn in what must be the DEO headquarters. On the tv, Kara thought she was successful in defeating the alien she was fighting, and she was grinning wildly, happy to have won.

And then she froze, her features contorting in pain and Cisco saw the light going out from her eyes. She collapsed to the ground, Alex screamed from somewhere, and Cisco felt the desperation in Winn.

When Cisco returned to present times, Winn was frowning deeply.

‘I just spent the last 10 minutes holding your hand in a very crowded bar, as you kept blinking blindly at me. This better be good.’

Cisco took his hand out of Winn’s hold, taking a deep breath before explaining, briefly, what he saw.

‘That’s so cool’, Winn’s eyes were wide.

‘It’s not’, Cisco drank a shot of tequila. ‘I can’t really control it and it only works on people from other Earths. I mean, I met my Earth 2 counterpart and he was an evil bastard, sure, but he could … do things, with this power. He died before he could explain, though.’

‘You…’, Winn spluttered. ‘You saw yourself die?’

Cisco winced. ‘He wasn’t me, technically. Just looked like me. If… I was in a bike gang.'

Winn blinked three times before tilting his head. ‘I’m imagining that now.’

Cisco smirked, not missing the way Winn’s eyes quickly moved down his body before settling back on his face.

‘Cisco’, Winn said very seriously, going as far as putting a hand on his shoulder and squeezing tightly. ‘Even without what you can do, you are a very important part of Barry’s team, because of your brain and your heart.'

Winn was looking straight into Cisco’s eyes, and he was close. So close, that it made Cisco’s breathing falter and the back of his neck feel warm.

‘Also’, Winn went on, his breath ticking Cisco’s face, ‘I’ve drank too much.’

Moment broken, Cisco chuckled. He quickly paid the bill and helped Winn up. He refused the help, but he was swaying on his feet, so Cisco walked him back to Star Labs.

‘How was your date?’, Barry asked when he saw them come in.

‘Not a date’, Cisco said, just as Winn said ‘It was okay.’

Blinking confusedly at Cisco, Winn shrugged.

‘It was still okay.’

‘Sure’, Cisco nodded. ‘You wanna go to bed now?’

He shook his head. ‘Is James still here?’

Barry nodded, pointing towards the med bay, where James was still by Kara’s bedside. Winn made to go there, but stopped half way through, turning to look at Cisco and smiling like an idiot.

‘Thanks, man. I needed this.’

‘Thank me tomorrow’, Cisco countered, ‘when I’ll bring you Advil for your headache.’

Winn pouted and said nothing more before going to Kara and James. Again, Cisco watched him go. His eyes didn’t stray to his ass this time, and his mind was on the way Winn felt when he saw Kara fall, how he felt when he was pointing a gun on that man. Someone as… cool as Winn should never feel something so dark.

Cisco stopped at that thought, because it was something Cailtin told him once. He shook his head and turned around, meeting Barry’s grin.

‘No’, was all he said, probably strongly, because Barry took a step back and wiped the smile off his face.

‘Okay.’, Barry nodded. ‘Whatever you say.’

Cisco left for the night with a fist bump shared with Barry and a small smile shared with Winn.

͟ \͞ 

Winn didn’t sleep at all for three nights before the day Caitlin said she will be ready with Kara’s antidote.

Somehow, Cisco knew this would happen, so he stayed with Winn. He fell asleep, sure, and every time he woke up Winn was still wide awake, but Cisco didn’t leave. He just kept Winn company, more often than not, silent company.

Clark was there the day Cailtin finished the antidote, and he was just as anxious as Winn.

It was disconcerting, to see Superman biting on his lower lip and fiddling with his fingers next to Kara’s bed‚ but to Cisco, it was even more disconcerting to feel Winn breathing so slowly. Feel‚ because Winn was sitting pretty close to Cisco‚ at the back of the med bay.

‘Look, while I am fairly certain this is going to work’, Caitlin said as she fiddled with the machines, ‘I don’t know how long it will take, for the antidote to take effect. So don’t expect Kara to miraculously wake up the second the drug hits her system.’

‘Just do it’, Clark said gruffly. ‘Please.’

Caitlin took a deep breath, but she nodded and turned back to Kara‚ inserting the alarmingly high needle into the cannula. The antidote was glowing green, and Cisco was frankly having difficulty looking away from it.

But he did look away when Kara started wheezing. Her pulse was picking up a little and she started making this little noises‚ half groans and half wheezes.

'What's happening to her?'‚ Clark all but yelled.

Caitlin tried to say 'I don’t know'‚ but she was cut off by Kara screaming.

It was a horrible sound, low and guttural, and it brought pain to all of their faces. Clark sprung into action, picking Kara up and settling her in his lap, wrapping his hands tightly around her, while Winn turned his back on the scene.

Cisco could see that he was struggling not to cry, both of his hands were fisted on his chest and his eyes were closed. Cisco gently placed his hands on top of Winn's‚ making him look at him.

'I can't'‚ Winn whispered shakily.

'I know' ‚ Cisco nodded once. 'Just wait.'

Kara was still screaming‚ and Clark was now saying her name‚ over and over again‚ mixed with pleas for her to wake up.

She did wake up‚ with a gasp.

When she registered that she was in her cousin’s arms, Kara sagged against him, pushing her forehead to his chest.

‘How are you feeling?’, he asked gently.

'Sore. Tired. What happened?'

'Kara’, Clark said softly, kissing her temple. ‘The alien injected you with something. You were in a coma.’

She pushed away from his hold, wide eyed. ‘How long?’

Clark swallowed. 'Almost ten months.'

Kara started crying at that, and Clark hugged her again.

'You’re going to be okay'‚ he whispered in her hair. 'Caitlin says you still need to rest‚ but-'

'Caitlin?’, Kara shrieked, pushing Clark away again and looking around. Her eyes fell on Caitlin and Barry.

‘You’re not in Kansas anymore’, Cailtin smiled.

‘Hey, I’ve been in a coma too’‚ Barry wiggled his eyebrows. 'And I woke up with superpowers‚ so if I could do it‚ so can you.'

Kara smiled at that‚ even if she was still crying. She still hasn’t seen Winn‚ and Cisco’s hand was still over his. He took it away and placed it over his chest, somewhat gently pushing him towards Kara’s bed.

'You up for more hugs‚ Kara?'‚ Cisco grinned. 'Cause this guy's just dying for a hug right now.'

When Kara saw Winn‚ her face lit up but she started crying even harder. It made Winn rush to her bedside‚ and even though she was still pretty much in Clark’s lap, she hugged Winn tightly.

Cisco saw Winn’s shoulders relax, and he saw his fingers tightening on the back of her shirt. Then Clark hugged them both and Cisco felt like he was intruding. So he shared a look with Caitlin and Barry and they all made their way out of the med lab.

'Good job'‚ he told Caitlin‚ going as far as kissing her forehead. ‘You’re amazing.’

She giggled, but her grin was pretty proud.

͟ \͞ 

Winn came out an hour later. He looked exhausted‚ but there was a smile on his face and a twinkle in his eye that Cisco hadn’t seen before.

‘She’s asleep’, he told Caitlin. ‘Says she feels fine, but her body’s sore.’

‘That will go away’, Barry said. ‘As soon as the healing kicks in.’

Winn nodded. ‘Clark fell asleep too’, he rolled his eyes. ‘It’ll take a while for him to let go of her.’

‘Cute'‚ Barry pointed out.

Winn didn’t comment on it‚ he just rolled his eyes again, but it looked fond. He sobered up after.

'We're probably gonna go when Kara wakes up. She wants to see Alex.'

'Of course'‚ Caitlin nodded. 'But you guys need to make sure she takes it easy for a while.'

Winn snorted at that‚ doubtful.

'And uh'‚ Barry hesitated. 'Make sure you update her on everything that happened while she was asleep. Even if there are huge changes that you think will hurt her‚ tell her.'

Winn sighed deeply‚ but he nodded‚ before he turned to Cisco.

'I gotta pack. You wanna help me out?'

Cisco raised an eyebrow at that‚ because he knew for sure that Winn packed his things two days ago. He was there. But Winn was looking hopefully at him‚ so Cisco nodded and followed him out.

͟ \͞ 

The room Winn had slept in really was obnoxiously blue‚ and it kinda burned Cisco's eyes. So‚ of course‚ Cisco focused on Winn.

He was wearing a tie for the first time since the day Cisco met him and his hair was combed back. He looked good‚ damn it. The vaguely green plaid shirt made his eyes stand out and the dark slacks he was wearing made Cisco want to compulsively take them off.

But Winn was pacing‚ wringing his fingers together and opening his mouth without any words actually coming out.

‘Dude’, Cisco stopped him with a hand on the shoulder. ‘What’s going trough you head?’

‘Well, you see’, he laughed awkwardly and fake, shrugging until Cisco took his hand away. ‘You remember how we talked, about how work relationships were weird and about how we didn’t actually have time for anything else?’

‘Yes’, Cisco said slowly. ‘I remember.’

‘Well I was thinking, and you know what would be even more awful?’

Winn finally looked up at Cisco, making his breath leave him for a second.

‘What?’, he said gently.

'If the two people'‚ Winn bit on his lower lip‚ 'were in different universes.'

Cisco breathed out, too shakily for his own taste. It was nice to know, that he wasn’t the only one to feel attracted to Winn. It was really, _really_ nice to know that he felt the same.

And yes, it was awful, the fact that their lives were literally on different worlds‚ but Winn was gorgeous‚ inside and out‚ and he was as brilliant as he was smart and right now‚ his eyes were locked to Cisco's.

As he breathed out‚ Cisco took a step forward‚ bringing him close to Winn. He never looked away from his eyes‚ and he smirked. Of course‚ that made Winn's eyes drop down to his lips. He was distracted‚ and Cisco took advantage of it‚ bringing a hand up and placing it on Winn's neck‚ just under his jaw.

Winn looked up at that‚ his eyebrows a bit raised. Cisco smiled, small and genuine, and he nodded once, letting his eyes fell on Winn's lips this time.

It was all the prompt they needed, so when Winn placed his hands on Cisco's hips‚ he went easily‚ not only pressing their bodies together, but their lips as well.

Winn kissed him slowly, but deeply. He tilted his head to the side and brought his fingers up into Cisco’s hair, grabbing onto it, but still gently.

Cisco loved it, so he sighed deeply and wrapped his free hand around Winn, holding him tightly.

In retaliation, Winn bit on his lower lip and everything kicked up a notch from there. By the end of it, Cisco couldn’t really breath anymore and Winn’s fingers were almost stuck in his hair. He might have left some bruises on Winn’s back, he couldn’t really check, they were still fully clothed.

When the kiss stopped, Winn was looking with wide eyes at him.

‘We know everything else doesn’t work’, Cisco said. ‘Maybe this will.’

Winn huffed on a laugh. ‘Across a universe?’

Cisco shrugged. ‘I’ve seen crazier things.’

It made Winn laugh, which was kind of lovely, and then he hugged Cisco pretty tightly, pressing their cheeks together.

They stayed like that for a while, Cisco’s fingers running through Winn’s hair‚ even if it took a while for Cisco to realize he was doing it.

‘I should check on Kara’, Winn said after a while‚ and Cisco nodded.

Still‚ they shared a sweet kiss before they stopped hugging eachother.

After Winn left the room‚ Cisco took a few moments to just breathe. Then he fixed his hair, but judging by the looks Caitlin and Barry threw his way, it didn’t help much.

͟ \͞ 

Two weeks later, Kara and Alex came over to ask Caitlin about some sort of thing they encountered and it was giving them trouble.

As the bio-engineers talked, Kara made his way to Cisco's side and gave him a weird looking phone.

‘What’s this?’, Cisco asked even as his fingers were flying over the touchscreen.

‘I think the official name is Intranet for the Multiverse, but we just call it IM.’

Cisco almost dropped the phone.

‘Oh, yeah’, Kara grinned. ‘Winn and his team figured out a way for our universes to communicate. Well, to text.’

Cisco turned his wide eyes to the brilliant piece of tech in his fingers.

'He was pretty insistent that you two should be in charge of it'‚ Kara went on. He could clearly hear the teasing tone in her voice, and he intended to snark something back at her, but the phone in his hands beeped.

‘Would you excuse me’, he said to Kara after checking the new text, ‘but it appears I have a date.’

She giggled, but Cisco cackled‚ all but running out of the Cortex. He needed to rush home, shower and change and then rush back to Star Labs and pick up the universe traveling device.

Because he had a date with Winn. In National City. On Earth 3.

Maybe they could actually make this work.


	15. Across the timelines

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Killer Vibe. Before‚ during and after Flashpoint.  
> (written after Flash 3x2)

**Before Flashpoint**

Cisco didn’t really know what was happening. Actually‚ he did know because he was conscious and present. But he didn’t really understand what was happening.

It started the moment Barry let the time wraith consume Zoom. Jay. Zoom. Cisco didn’t know what to call him anymore, and he wondered what Caitlin was calling him.

At first, Caitlin acted like it was no big deal. No big deal that she finally accepted to get a boyfriend after Ronnie, no big deal that the boyfriend turned out to be evil, that he tried to kill her, kill Barry, kill everyone in multiple universes.

This went on for a couple of hours, and Cisco understood it. Caitlin always preferred to be seen as strong and untouched.

But after those couple of hours‚ when the night settled fully over the city and everybody already left‚ Caitlin wrapped her fingers around Cisco’s‚ sweetly asking if he'd like to go over to hers and watch a movie.

Cisco understood this too‚ the dread of being alone tonight. So he went to Caitlin's apartment‚ and that's when things started getting confusing.

Caitlin changed out of her work clothes‚ which was something Cisco was expecting. She usually turned up in a pair of jeans and a tshirt of jumper‚ but not tonight. Tonight‚ Caitlin came out of her dressing wearing a pair of shorts and a grey tank top.

She also came out with a pair of men's Star Labs sweatpants and a tshirt Cisco was sure disappeared in his drier. Cisco changed into them‚ getting comfortable and not really thinking about it.

When he came out of the bathroom‚ Caitlin was in the process of putting sheets on the pulled out couch. Cisco didn't even _know_ the couch could be pulled out‚ they always sat on it as it was‚ with the feet on the coffee table. Cisco was confused‚ but he helped Caitlin with the sheets and pillow covers‚ shutting off the lights before they got in.

She settled on the left side of the bed and that was okay‚ Cisco got under the covers on the right side‚ unconxiously making sure they weren't touching.

When Caitlin disregarded that and pushed their bodies together‚ letting her head rest on his upper arm‚ Cisco's confusion grew because while Caitlin was easier with touching since their lives turned upside down‚ this was something completely new for her. For them.

Cisco swallowed hard and made his voice not waver.

'Don't you wanna turn on the tv?’

She shook her head and he felt it more than he saw it.

‘Could you just hold me?’, she whispered, confusing him even more.

Still, this was Caitlin, and he had longed to be in her orbit for a long while‚ so Cisco took his hand from beneath her head and wrapped it around her shoulders. Caitlin sighed as she snuggled even closer to him, turning fully on her side, pushing her chest and legs to him, her head coming down on his chest.

She fumbled in the dark with her hand, until Cisco understood what she wanted. So with his free hand, he grabbed a hold of Caitlin's wrist and let her squirm some more, until their intertwined fingers were resting on his abdomen.

‘You can cry, you know’, Cisco whispered as they settled. ‘I think everything that happened qualifies for a cry.'

Caitlin huffed. 'I don’t wanna cry.'

'Alright. Whatever you want'‚ was Cisco’s quick response.

She was silent for a couple of seconds. 'You wouldn’t like what I want.'

Cisco was so utterly confused and the fact that he could _feel_ the warmth sweeping from Caitlin's body wasn't helping.

He deflected‚ chuckling slightly. 'How bad can it be?'

In response‚ Caitlin's fingers tightened their hold on him. She moved slowly‚ pushing her body up his until their noses bumped. That's when Cisco stopped moving, but it was when Caitlin's lips met his that he stopped breathing.

He has never been this confused in his life.

Caitlin didn't linger too much, settling back down against him.

'I liked Jay'‚ she started saying‚ words whispered in the dark but incredibly loud to Cisco's ears. 'He seemed like a nice person‚ didn’t he? And I was attracted to him‚ sure‚ but…'

When she didn't go on‚ Cisco said her name.

'He was safe'‚ she said quickly. 'Which sounds ridiculous right now‚ but I thought Jay was safe.'

Caitlin finally seemed shaken up because of everything that happened. She was actually shaking and taking a deep breath every three.

‘I don’t understand’, Cisco admitted, because he was still confused to hell and back.

'Jay was safe'‚ Caitlin said shakily‚ 'because being with him wasn't as screwed up as falling in love with my best friend.’

Cisco took a few moments to compose himself. This information shouldn’t have surprised him, but it still did.

'I’m sorry’, he said after a too long while. ‘I’m sorry that you and Iris both met Barry in this lifetime.’

Caitlin raised her head at that, and even though he could barely see the outline of her face‚ he could tell that her expression was shocked.

'Cisco’, she said slowly, ‘why would have I kissed _you_ if I was in love with Barry?’

He shrugged, making her move with him. ‘Same reason you got with Jay?’

‘Are you…’, Caitlin hesitated. ‘Are you honestly this dense or are you making fun of me?’

Cisco went back to being confused and she must have seen it‚ because Caitlin huffed.

'Barry is not my best friend‚ Cisco. That’s you‚ that has always been you.'

It took a while for Cisco to understand what she was saying. And then it took a while for him to actually comprehend it‚ to understand what it meant.

He knew she meant it. Not only because Caitlin never lied to him, but because she was still sprawled over his chest, he could feel every exhale on his face and their hands were still clasped together‚ he could feel her rapid pulse under his fingertips.

Caitlin falling in love with Cisco seemed ridiculous‚ at first glance. But the more you thought about it‚ it actually made a lot of sense. And Cisco has thought a lot about it in the past.

There was just one thing that still confused him.

'Why do you think it's screwed up?'

Caitlin shook her head. ‘Because we’re best friends, Cisco. You’ll never look at me like that, and I know it.’

He let out a shaky breath. ‘For someone so incredibly smart, you really got stupid over this.’

Caitlin’s entire body stiffened. 'I can’t have you making fun of me.'

'I’m not'‚ he was quick to assure her. 'I just meant that… I have been looking at you. Like that.' He took a deep breath. 'I’ve been looking for a while now.'

Caitlin didn’t say anything‚ she just kept staring at him. After a while‚ Cisco managed to gather the courage to move the hand that was still wrapped around her shoulders. He slowly snuck it under her hair, at the base of her neck. Cisco tried to be as gentle as possible, as he brought her head down.

Their noses bumped again, because there really wasn’t any light around. But Cisco switched course accordingly, and he managed to press their lips together.

Caitlin sighed deeply and let her body go limp, pressing against his again. When she tilted her head and responded to his kiss, Cisco wasn’t confused anymore.

Because sharing a soft and unhurried kiss with Caitlin felt like the most natural thing in the world.

 

**Flashpoint**

Cisco ended up driving the cute pediatrician home. Well‚ he got his driver to drive the cute pediatrician home‚ while Cisco seethed silently next to her in the back seat.

She kept looking at him‚ out of the corner of her eyes‚ immediately blushing and looking away when she got caught. Cisco was used to people looking at him‚ it came with the perks of being a celebrity‚ but in such closed quarters it was uncomfortable.

'What?'‚ he snapped. 'Why do you keep staring at me?'

'I'm sorry'‚ she blushed harder. 'It's just that I haven't seen you in real life in 11 years! You weren’t there last year at the reunion.'

He froze at that. 'What reunion?' 

She bit on her lower lip‚ which was somewhat distracting.

'We went to highschool together'‚ she said in a lowered voice‚ looking hesitantly at him.

The thing was… Cisco didn’t like thinking about his highschool years. Those were before he made a name for himself‚ before he was a billionaire‚ before people respected him. It was not a fun time.

But there was _something_ about this chick.

'I didn’t catch your name.'‚ he finally said.

She bit on her lower lip again before looking into his eyes. 'It's Caitlin. Caitlin Snow.'

Cisco frowned. 'Like the chick I always partnered up with in chem lab? The one who always used to wear unfitted sweaters and-'

'Yes‚ well'‚ she bristled.

'The same person I got to third base with at prom?'

Her blush was a thing of beauty and she looked away‚ of course‚ but she did nod.

'Caitlin Snow'‚ he breathed out. 'Wow.'

Very little else was said for the rest of the car drive‚ and Caitlin left his car very awkwardly.

And Cisco‚ well… He went home and broke up with the girlfriend that was only after his money. He took a quick shower‚ dressed in jeans and an old Star Wars shirt‚ picked up some pizza and a couple of pints of icecream and made his way back to Caitlin's Snow small town house.

She opened the door wearing pajamas and her jaw dropped when she saw him there.

'I thought we could catch up'‚ he said with a lot more courage than he felt. 'Get to know each other again. And‚ you know‚ if we like what we see‚ maybe we could finish what we started all those years ago.' He did his best not to sound overly-flirty‚ and he smiled easily. 'No pressure‚ though.'

It took a few beats of Caitlin blushing furiously‚ but eventually‚ surprisingly enough‚ she smiled at let him in.

They ate in the living room on her couch‚ talking about this and that. 10 years was a lot of time to make up for in a night‚ but they tried.

Cisco loved the fact that every time he started talking about his fortune or work, Caitlin waved him off.

'I know all that already, I do watch the news. Plus, that’s your job. I thought we were going to talk about _ourselves_ ‚ not our jobs.'

It was refreshing‚ to Cisco. Having someone who wanted to know what his favorite book was‚ his favorite movie‚ his favorite pizza topping‚ not the amount of money in his account or what important people he could introduce her too.

When the pizza was long gone and the night was turning into very early morning‚ Caitlin bit on her lower lip but this time‚ she didn’t look away from him.

Cisco smiled a bit at her and took a deep breath‚ but that’s all he had time to do before Caitlin was boldly settling into his lap‚ fingers wrapping around his hair‚ hips gently pushing down onto his‚ chests pressed together.

She raised her eyebrows in a very playful manner. 'Let's see if you’re as good at this as I remember.'

It sounded like a challenge‚ and Cisco did not get where he was right now by backing out of challenges. So he smirked, finally letting himself be as flirty as he wanted to‚ and he slowly moved his hands down Caitlin's back‚ stopping them on her ass and squeezing it tightly.

He didn’t kiss Caitlin‚ as much as he bit on her lower lip and soothed the sting with his tongue.  She moaned‚ surprised and low in her throat and Cisco grinned against her mouth for a few blinks‚ before he kissed her properly.

And really‚ he barely stopped kissing her throughout the night because it felt even better than he remembered. And more important than every girl he’s had in his bed in the past decade.

 

**After Flashpoint**

There was still adrenaline rushing through Cisco’s veins from the fight against The Rival‚ and when he came back into the Cortex‚ Caitlin saw right through him‚ of course she did.

But she waited until everyone left before she made her move. And her move was to smile gently as him as she pushed him into the closest desk.

Cisco let her‚ easily. He let her wrap her hands around his shoulders‚ let her press her body to hers and let Caitlin kiss him long and steady‚ until he couldn’t remember where he was anymore.

He remembered‚ though‚ when there was a crash and a highly pitched yelp.

Stopping the kiss‚ they both turned to see a very shocked Barry. His jaw was dropped‚ his eyes were wide‚ his cheeks were red and he was gaping at them.

Cisco detached himself from Caitlin's hold.

'Sorry‚ man'‚ he smiled at Barry. 'I know you’re not comfortable with PDAs.'

Barry made some sort of disbelieving sound‚ eyes skipping between the two of them.

'You're together?'‚ he screeched‚ making Caitlin and Cisco share a confused look.

But she was the one that spoke next. 'We weren't together in that other timeline?'

Barry shook his head.

Cisco pouted. 'Well that seems wrong.'

Caitlin smiled at him‚ giddy and lovingly. She gave him a quick peck on the lips before grabbing her coat.

'I'll let you boys figure this out'‚ she winked at Barry on her way out of the Cortex.

Barry stared after her for a while‚ before turning to Cisco and staring at him as well.

'So'‚ Cisco said awkwardly.

'How long have you two been…'‚ Barry blinked at him.

'Just a couple of months.'

'How?'‚ Barry asked next‚ still disbelieving.

Cisco took a few seconds to gather his thoughts‚ struggling to find a way for him to explain.

'When Ronnie died‚ both of the times‚ I was there for Caitlin.'

'Of course'‚ Barry was quick to nod.

'And when Dante died‚ she was there for me.'

Again, Barry nodded.

'Thing is, I only understood what it meant then. Being there when a loved one dies, the way I have been for Caitlin and the way she has been for me, it’s… it’s something else, man.’

Barry was frowning.

‘I’ve always loved her’, Cisco went on. 'I think that’s obvious even to you.’

Barry nodded, and even smiled a bit.

‘After Ronnie died‚ she realized that it was more than that. And after Dante died, I … got on board as well.’

Cisco couldn’t help but smile, thinking of all the miscommunication madness that followed Dante’s death. Caitlin thought Cisco would never see her in any way more than a friend, Cisco thought he couldn’t handle being in such close proximity to her if nothing ever were to happen. It was a chaotic mess that exploded one night, a night that started with a nasty fight and ended with a lovely kiss.

Looking up, Cisco saw that Barry was still mildly confused and very shocked.

‘Dude’, Cisco frowned. ‘Is it really that surprising?’

‘I…’, Barry tried. ‘I just never thought of it before. The two of you‚ together.'

Cisco shook his head. 'Man‚ I can't really remember a time in which I wasn’t even a little bit in love with Caitlin.’

He smiled again, because he couldn’t help himself. Because he knew, that Caitlin was waiting for him in her car. And he knew, that she’d drive him home and he’ll try to convince her to sleep over, and she’d spend the drive whining about how she doesn’t have her things with her, but she’d still stay the night, using his toothbrush in the morning and stealing one of his shirts.

'Hey'‚ Barry said gently. ‘It’s not that I’m not happy for you‚ because I am. I can see it in your eyes, that she makes you happy. Just… gimme a minute to get used to it‚ alright?’

Cisco nodded at that, easily. The Barry he knew a week ago would always scrunch up his nose if Caitlin even grabbed Cisco's hand. This Barry seemed like he'd be more accepting of his relationship with Caitlin‚ which would really make their lab life better.

Because there was nothing and nobody Cisco would ever give up Caitlin for. Not now‚ not ever.


	16. Vibe vs Killer Frost

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Killer Frost has a plan to kill The Flash. It involves Cisco and he doesn't see it coming. He's not the only one who gets hurt throughout the ordeal.
> 
> Fix it fic. Written after 3x6. Before 3x7.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here's something good before all the bad that is coming tonight. Featuring all of your favorite things: smut and angst.

Cisco hated Killer Frost. He hated her since the moment he met her, and that was before Earth 1's Caitlin started turning into her, before she got him into this situation. And this was an incredibly horrible situation.

»«

In order to make sense of the situation he found himself him in‚ Cisco started with a series of simple statements.

True fact: Caitlin Snow was Cisco Ramon's best friend. He loved Barry and they were close‚ yes‚ but he has known Caitlin for longer and the bond they made when Ronnie died was something incredibly strong‚ something that Cisco was grateful to have.

True fact: Cisco Ramon was in love with Caitlin Snow. He didn’t know exactly when it happened‚ but he did know that it was a long time brewing and that it reached its peak when Captain Cold and Heatwave kidnapped her. That's when Cisco realized that his feelings were far from platonic and he couldn’t shake them since them.

Maybe true fact: Caitlin thought about Cisco in a romantic way sometimes. He caught glimpses of it‚ when she said something very dual ended or she looked at him in such a soft but loving way. But it was always gone the next second.

Which brings Cisco to the next true fact: Caitlin wasn’t ready for another relationship yet. After losing Ronnie twice and the clusterfuck that was Jay‚ she was too cautious and afraid to put her heart on the line again.

Painfully true fact: even if Caitlin felt something for Cisco‚ she was never going to say anything about it. She was never going to make a move.

So‚ in conclusion‚ Cisco blamed everything on the shock from having Caitlin make a move‚ on long months of his repressed feelings.

And on Killer Frost. Mostly‚ he blamed Killer Frost.

»«

Wally was still trapped in that hella weird tree thing‚ and Caitlin has been working on a way to get him out. She was working nonstop and she hasn’t left the labs for 63 hours straight. Cisco was counting.

He and Barry all but yelled at her to go home and it didn’t work‚ not until she got a dizzy spell and almost fell. Cisco put his foot down then‚ gave Caitlin one of Barry's protein bars and all but dragged her out of Star Labs, driving her home.

That’s when things started getting weird, that’s when it happened‚ in front of her apartment building.

'Do you want to come up for a cup of coffee?'‚ Caitlin smiled.

Cisco glared at her. 'No more coffee‚ woman‚ you need to sleep.'

She scrunched up her nose and looked down, but not before Cisco saw the redness in her cheeks.

'I don’t think I even have coffee left, to be honest. But that’s not what I was offering anyway.'

He frowned. 'Then what-'

'Coffee usually is code for something else in this situation.'‚ she looked hopeful, smiling softly‚ red still coloring her cheeks.

He didn’t really understand.

'You're frowning.'‚ she pointed out.

'I don’t know what you’re talking about.'‚ Cisco admitted after a beat.

And then, Caitlin did something impossible. She took a deep breath, swallowed hard and looked into his eyes. Then she kissed him.

Caitlin put a hand on his shoulder and leaned in‚ closing her eyes just before her lips met his. Cisco didn’t close his eyes‚ too shocked to do it. That is why he didn’t kiss her back either.

She pulled away soon enough‚ running her tongue over her lower lip quickly.

'I don’t…'‚ Cisco tried. 'I never – I thought you –uhm. Caitlin.'

She chuckled.

'I am very confused'‚ Cisco breathed out.

'Let’s address the issue logically, then.', Caitlin seemed amused. 'You care about me: true or false?'

'True.'‚ There was no hesitation on his part.

'Sometimes,  you care about me more than just as your friend.'

'True enough'. It was _always,_ not _sometimes_ , but Cisco wasn’t ready to admit to that yet.

'You want this. True or false?'

'But you don’t'‚ Cisco frowned.

'Just answer the question'‚ Caitlin said a bit forcefully. 'You want this. True or false?'

He thought she was never going to make the first move. But she did‚ and the ball was in his court now. So Cisco nodded.

'True‚ I do want it. Do you?'

Caitlin smiled at that‚ slowly but softly. She leaned in again‚ and this time‚ Cisco's brain came to life and he was able to kiss her back.

It was so sweet. She wrapped her arms around his neck and brought him as close to her as she could, and Cisco went willingly. He put his hands on her waist and tilted his head‚ deepening the kiss.

She let out a content sound‚ the fingers from one of her hands wrapping around his hair‚ pulling slightly just as she pushed her tongue past his lips.

It wasn’t a sweet kiss anymore. Not by far. From then on‚ it was nails scratching and fingers digging into soft flesh‚ it was teeth biting lips and tongues easing the sting‚ it was Caitlin letting out these small puffs of air every time Cisco bit on her lower lip.

It was Cisco losing his breath completely‚ so much so that he had to pull away in order to breath.

'We should talk'‚ he managed to breathe out.

Caitlin pulled them close again, but she didn’t kiss him this time‚ she just hugged him tightly‚ pushing her cheek to his chest. Cisco returned the hug‚ of course he did.

'We should talk'‚ she agreed slowly. 'But not now. Please‚ not now. Tonight‚ I just want you.'

Cisco swallowed thickly. 'What do you want‚ exactly?'

She pulled away from the hug‚ wrapping her fingers around his‚ looking straight into his eyes.

'I want you to come up for coffee.'

'I thought you said you didn’t have any coffee'‚ Cisco raised his eyebrows.

'I still wasn’t talking about coffee'‚ she said pointedly and Cisco…

Well‚ he blushed at first. And his heartbeat kicked up a notch. But then Caitlin squeezed his fingers and bit on her lower lip and that sent a very strong signal straight to his crotch.

So Cisco nodded and let Caitlin pull him up to her place.

»«

He hasn’t been to Caitlin's new apartment since she moved out of the one she shared with Ronnie. Going through the front door‚  Cisco immediately noticed that it was smaller‚ but just as classy in its design.

There were different pieces of furniture that weren’t from the same set but worked very well together‚ still in warm earthy colors with just splashes of bright colors here and there.

Caitlin took off her shoes and Cisco was quick to do so as well. She walked into the living room‚ throwing her jacket on the sofa and throwing Cisco a look that he should do the same.

He did‚ as Caitlin made her way to one side of the room that had an armchair and a small coffee table‚ against a window. She put her bag on the floor and then took off the jumper she was wearing‚ letting that fall on top of it.

When she turned around‚ her eyes were dark and playful‚ there was a smirk on her lips and Cisco had a bit of trouble looking at her face because he could see that under her simple white shirt‚ she had a red bra on.

Which was something he honestly didn’t think was her style‚ but he was in no position to comment on it. Nor did he want to.

'Come here'‚ she said playfully‚ going as far as extending her hand for him to take.

He did so‚ heart beating wildly in his chest‚ and the fact that Caitlin pushed him down didn’t really help.

Cisco found himself sprawled on the armchair. He straightened up a bit‚ though it was a difficult task because the chair didn’t actually have any armrests‚ which was weird.

He didn’t really care anymore about how weird it was when Caitlin sat on his lap‚ her thighs bracketing his and her hands coming up to his neck.

Cisco grabbed at her waist to help steady her‚ but he was looking a bit wide eyed. Probably.

'This is really happening.'‚ he breathed out shakily. 'You're sure this is really happening?'

She smiled at that‚ flattening her hand on the center of his chest. Caitlin did a double take‚ because his heart was beating wildly and she could feel it.

Her look turned softer‚ but her smile didn’t waver. 'Calm down‚ Cisco. It's just me.'

He shook his head a little. 'You have never been _just_ anything.'

She blushed at that. 'It's just me and you.'

Caitlin didn’t let him answer‚ kissing him. Again‚ it started off sweetly‚ but that didn’t last.

Sooner than Cisco thought was possible‚ he was rock hard with Caitlin slowly rocking herself against it‚ her shirt was open and his lips were giving her skin all the attention it deserved‚ as she kept on scratching his scalp and neck and jaw.

Cisco pulled off her shirt and she was the one to take off her bra‚ making his brain fritz for a while there. But then she urged him to take off his shirt‚ and didn’t waste any time in pressing their naked chests together.

That's when Cisco felt the familiar sensation tugging at his chest‚ and he didn’t have time to say anything before he was thrown into a vision.

»«

Earth 1‚ sometime in the future. Cisco and Caitlin were in a pretty fancy unfamiliar room. They were standing in front of a full length mirror‚ Cisco behind Caitlin. He was helping her unzip her dress.

Her white dress. Her very beautiful white dress.

Cisco was unzipping Caitlin's wedding dress. There was a gold ring on his finger‚ shiny and new.

'This is ridiculous'‚ future Cisco grumbled. 'Everybody knows what happens on the wedding night‚ why do these fashion designers insist on putting on so many zippers and clips and ugh.'

Future Caitlin giggled at him. 'I think they say it'll help with foreplay.'

He grumbled some more‚ something about how his tux didn’t have a chastity belt. When he was finally done‚ the dress fell to the floor in a heap‚ and Cisco turned to look at him with a grin on her face. She was wearing a red bra‚ similar to the one she was wearing in the present.

'Your turn‚ husband.'‚ Caitlin raised her eyebrows.

'Help me out‚ wife?'‚ he grinned.

»«

With a flash of blue‚ Cisco was back in the present. In Caitlin's apartment‚ on her arm-less armchair‚ shirtless with an equally shirtless Caitlin in his lap‚ looking worriedly at him.

'Did you just vibe me?'

'I didn’t mean to'‚ he was quick to wrap his arms back around her.

'Am I her?'‚ she whispered shakily.

Cisco shook his head. 'No‚ no, it was you.'

She relaxed at that. 'What did you see?'

He couldn’t tell her. He wanted to‚ but these visions weren’t exactly set in stone and they were still… starting something.

'Nothing important'‚ he tried his best to sound truthful. 'Just you and me in Jitters‚ at some point.'

Caitlin let out a long sigh‚ before smiling at him. She grabbed his hand and put it on her breast.

'Forget about it'‚ she whispered and well‚ Cisco listened to her.

He also kissed her and began moving his hands over her chest and over her back and hips. As a response‚ Caitlin started moving her hips again‚ and Cisco was a goner.

Thankfully‚ she ordered him to the bedroom soon enough.

Cisco got a bit distracted when he got there‚ because her bed was incredible. It was very large‚ fitted with dark blue bedding‚ and it had a metal frame with an intricate swirly design. He was still staring at it as he pushed his pants under it.

When he turned around and saw Caitlin throwing her panties to the other side of the room‚ Cisco whined.

She turned to him‚ startled‚ and he used her shock to push her on the bed. Caitlin landed with an _oomf_ ‚ but it quickly developed into a moan when Cisco drew her knees apart and wasted no time in putting his mouth to the space between them.

As he kissed and licked at her core‚ he ran his hands over her thighs and her stomach and he was absolutely delighted by the fact that Caitlin's moans kept getting louder and louder.

When she grabbed his hair with both of her hands and pulled at it‚ Cisco yelped‚ in surprise more than in pain.

'Condom'‚ she told him. 'Bathroom. Now.'

She sounded a bit breathless and a lot impatient‚ which made Cisco feel smug‚ but also incredibly happy that he was there. That she allowed him to be there‚ that she wanted him.

When he came back from the bathroom with the condom already on‚ Caitlin was up and she pushed him on the bed‚ urging him to lie down.

He did so‚ on the edge of the bed‚ intent of dragging himself to the center of it. Cisco didn’t manage to do that‚ before Caitlin swiftly sat in his lap and guided him inside of her.

She moaned‚ low in her throat‚ and Cisco just had to kiss her then. He dragged her down and kissed her roughly‚ putting his hands on her waist to keep her steady‚ planting his feet as best as he could‚ as he started fucking into her with a level of intensity that surprised even himself.

He took control‚ but Caitlin didn't seem to mind. She stopped kissing him‚ at one point‚ but she pushed her face into his neck‚ breathing heavily onto his skin and moaning against it.

She was shaking in his arms and taking him easily. Cisco has thought about this before‚ repeatedly‚ but it was never this… quick. Intense. Desperate.

It was even better than anything he imagined.

Just as he thought he was getting very close‚ Caitlin straightened up‚ making Cisco stop moving.

She closed her eyes and ranked her fingers down his chest‚ startling a moan out of him. And then Caitlin started moving‚ even faster than he did and honestly‚ Cisco couldn’t breathe.

He couldn’t look away either‚ from the sweat on her brow and the movement of her breasts‚ the way her hips bounced over him and the way her thigh muscles were twitching.

Caitlin came first‚ with a loud moan and her head thrown back‚ her nails digging almost painfully into Cisco's chest. But she didn’t move away.

She laid down on his chest again‚ urging him to move like he did before. Caitlin grabbed his hands away from her hips‚ and that lack of support was making his movements a bit erratic‚ but not any less good.

He didn’t notice it.

Cisco was too lost in his pleasure and his impending orgasm‚ and in Caitlin and the feel of her. He noticed it too late.

As he came‚ with a shout of her name and his legs trembling‚ he heard a click and only after that he realized there was something cold around one of his wrists.

Looking up‚ he saw that Caitlin had handcuffed him to the metal frame of the bed.

He turned back to her‚ confused.

She just giggled at him‚ getting up and away from the bed‚ taking the condom and heading to the bathroom.

Cisco was still panting‚ and in his orgasm-altered state‚ he actually thought that this was something that Caitlin might enjoy.

He should have known better.

»«

Caitlin didn’t really come out of the bathroom because Caitlin wasn’t really there.

What did come out of the bathroom was a naked body that looked just like Caitlin's‚ except for the eyes‚ that were now light blue.

And cold. So cold.

'Caitlin'‚ Cisco breathed out‚ even if he knew it wasn’t her.

Killer Frost smiled. 'Love is such an interesting thing. It can be so easily manipulated.'

'Don’t do this‚ please.' He wasn’t above begging‚ not when it came to Caitlin.

She didn’t say anything for a while. She put on a suit she took out of the back of her closet‚ and while it was beautiful‚ Cisco wanted to see it burn. She put on a pair of boots and put on a lot more dark makeup than Caitlin usually went for‚ closing her eyes when she was done‚ somehow making her hair turn completely blonde.

Then she helped Cisco back into his boxers‚ before sitting down at the edge of the bed‚ by his hip.

'You see‚ Cisco‚ I already did this.'‚ she patted his crotch‚ making him flinch badly.

'And I did this'‚ she pointed to the cuffs‚ 'to keep you here while I deal with Barry.'

She spit out his name with rage and disgust and that‚ more than anything‚ cut him through his heart. But he pushed through it‚ boldly putting his free hand on her arm.

'Please don’t-'

'Oh but I will'‚ she interrupted strongly. 'Because he deserves it. Because he did this to me. I'm going to kill The Flash and there's nothing you can do to stop me.'

He tried to keep her there. But she turned her body so cold‚ he couldn’t hold on to it anymore.

Killer Frost left without another word.

»«

It took a lot of stretching and the handcuff digging very painfully into his wrist‚ drawing blood, but Cisco managed to get his phone and call Barry.

'Killer Frost is out to kill you.'

Cisco heard a crash before Barry said a shaky 'What?'

'Killer Frost is out to kill you'‚ he said again‚ 'and I am handcuffed in Caitlin's apartment.'

Barry only paused for a second. 'I'm coming to get you.'

'No‚ she might be waiting. You need to stay at Star Labs and erase Caitlin's access.'

'I'll send Joe'‚ Barry countered.

Cisco looked down at the boxers he was wearing‚ to the rumpled sheets and their clothes thrown over the room. He guessed his mortification wasn’t important by this point.

»«

Joe's face when he stepped into the bedroom would have been hilarious in any other circumstance. But the man thankfully didn’t say anything‚ and he sped back to Star Labs.

'How did she manage to handcuff you?'‚ was the first thing Barry asked.

When Cisco didn’t answer‚ Joe cleared his throat. 'I didn’t know you two were… seeing each other.'

Even though Cisco wasn’t looking at him‚ he knew that Barry's jaw dropped.

'We weren’t'‚ his voice cracked‚ but he did look up‚ at Barry and Iris who were watching him with equal levels of shock.

'She played me and she played me bad‚ but that doesn’t matter now‚ because she wants to kill you‚ Barry.'

Iris recovered first. 'How do we stop her?'

'How do we find her?'‚ Joe went on.

Cisco took a deep breath.

»«

Killer Frost was easy to find‚ because she still had Caitlin's phone. That wasn’t the problem.

The problem was what they were going to do once they get to her. Barry argued that they could use the power dampening cuffs‚ that he'll just flash in and put them around her wrist‚ then take her to the pipeline.

It could work‚ Cisco thought. It could also go terribly wrong‚ like most things involving Killer Frost usually went.

But unfortunately‚ nobody had any other idea. So Barry went.

»«

'Oh god'‚ he said over the comms. 'She kidnapped Julian.'

That didn’t make a lot of sense‚ to Cisco. But before he got to question it‚ Iris urged Barry on and in a flash or two‚ Killer Frost was locked up in the pipeline and Julian was at the hospital.

It seemed too easy.

»«

Everybody was silent in the Cortex‚ staring at the screens that showed Killer Frost in one of the pipeline cells‚ casually sitting on the ground with her legs crossed‚ inspecting her nails.

'Why did she kidnap Julian?'‚ Iris finally asked.

Barry shook his head. 'She wanted his help. She thought he could help her get rid of her powers.'

'She's mad that she got these powers'‚ Cisco said slowly. 'But she… It looks like she's embracing them. Why would she want to get rid of them?'

'It doesn’t make sense'‚ Barry looked confused and helpless, which was exactly how Cisco was feeling.

'We got her easily'‚ Joe said absently.

' _Too_ easily'‚ Cisco countered. 'She couldn’t beat the Flash, she might be able to beat me, and she knows that. This… She's still a genius. This must be part of her plan.'

'What plan?'‚ Iris asked desperately.

Cisco shook his head, because he had no idea. 'We have to be extra careful. There is no way she can get out of that cell, but we all have to be careful.'

'We'll be careful about Killer Frost.'‚ Barry said strongly. 'But what about Caitlin?'

'I'll think of something'‚ Cisco answered just as strongly. He headed out to his workshop and didn’t even stop HR from joining him.

»«

On the first day‚ when Barry brought Frost her lunch‚ she was grinning at him.

'Did you know'‚ she said sweetly‚ 'that she actually wanted you?'

Barry kind of froze at that.

'Granted‚ it was shortly'‚ Frost went on. 'Just for a night‚ as she drank herself under the table and you were sweet enough to take care of her.'

She laughed. 'Do you ever wonder what would have happened if? If Ronnie didn’t come back‚ if he hadn’t died‚ if she would have went with her guts and told you something that night? Oh‚ the possibilities.'

Thankfully, Barry left before she got to say anything else.

As he got back to the Cortex‚ he and Iris were avoiding each other's gaze.

'Guys'‚ Cisco said strongly. 'Don’t let her get to you. This must be part of her plan. She can't get to you physically'‚ he told Barry, 'so she's trying to get to your head.'

'Well it's working!'‚ Barry snapped‚ surprisingly. 'Is it true?'

Cisco laughed, despite himself. 'Probably.'

Barry's jaw dropped in shock and confusion.

'Look‚ man'‚ Cisco gently grabbed his shoulders. 'It's probably true, Caitlin probably wanted you at some point. Hell‚ man‚ _I wanted you_ at some point.'

Barry was looking very red and his eyes were alarmingly wide. Cisco stopped touching him, in hopes he'd feel comfortable.

'We… We were both pretty broken after the particle accelerator exploded'‚ Cisco started. 'And then that asshole… He brought you. And for 9 months‚ we were a little less broken because we had to take care of you.'

'And then, Barry, you woke up. And Cait and I…'‚ he couldn’t help but smile. 'We watched you bloom into this impossible, gorgeous thing. We watched you become the Flash and everything that it meant and… Of course there was infatuation there. How could there not be?'

He straightened up and smiled at Iris. 'It's gone, though. That I can promise you.'

She nodded. 'Is that what happened with you and Caitlin?'

The smile fell off Cisco's face and he looked away from them‚ shaking his head.

'I'm not having this conversation'‚ was all he said before he walked out of the room the headed to his workshop. He had a lot of work to do.

»«

On the second day‚ Frost was waiting for Barry with narrowed eyes.

'So are you still blaming yourself for Ronnie's death‚ or did everybody else manage to convince that you weren’t actually the reason he died the second time around?'

Barry had the smarts to not say anything. Frost laughed at that.

But when Barry came into the Cortex‚ he was wavering.

»«

So the next day‚ Cisco went to give Frost her food.

She smiled wildly at the sight of him. 'My love! I've missed you.'

Cisco felt sick to his stomach. He has wanted to hear those words come out of Caitlin's mouth, but this… it was wrong. It was so utterly wrong and it hurt him to no end.

He said nothing and ignored her laughter.

Barry was looking at him worriedly when he came back into the Cortex. Cisco ignored him too.

»«

The next day was worse. When Cisco brought her food‚ Frost leered at him.

'I dreamt about you last night. I remembered all the nice things you did with your head between my thighs.'

Cisco wanted to throw up. She kept talking‚ on and on about the good sex they had and he couldn’t even look at her.

When he got into the Cortex‚ Barry was looking incredibly worried. 'Still don’t want to talk about it?'

Cisco violently shook his head before taking a deep breath.

'I need to go see Doctor Tannahauser.'

'Who?'‚ Barry frowned.

'Caitlin's mother.'

He explained quickly that Caitlin's relationship with her mom was bad, but that the older woman helped Caitlin with her powers. So not only was Tannahauser a genius in her field, but she already knew about Caitlin and her powers, and she had access to all of the tests.

'Do you want me to go with you?'‚ Barry grabbed his shoulder.

'No'‚ Cisco was quick to shake his head. 'I want you to stay here and keep being careful.'

Barry sighed, deeply. Cisco felt like he did little else in the past days.

'I'm coming with you'‚ Iris said strongly‚ making both men turn to look at her.

'I can take a few days off work and it’s not like I'm much help here.'‚ she smiled at Cisco.

'I don’t need babysitting'‚ he all but snarled.

Iris snorted. 'I know you don’t. I‚ however‚ need to get away from here because seeing her like that‚ it's hurting me and I hate feeling useless.'

Cisco couldn’t say no to that. Not when Iris was keeping her back straight even through the tears that were pooling in her eyes‚ and not when Barry was looking at him with big‚ pleading‚ puppy eyes.

'I'll pick you up early tomorrow morning'‚ he sighed. 'It's a bit of a drive.'

'Yay‚ roadtrip!'‚ Iris said. Her enthusiasm fell short.

»«

Iris was not a morning person. It took an hour‚ two coffees and a can of coke for her to become something close to human. They were already half way through their journey.

'I'm sorry'‚ she finally said. 'I slept little and I slept badly.'

Cisco snorted at that. 'I don’t think I slept well since last year.'

'Ain't that the truth?'‚ she sighed. 'Look‚ Cisco‚ I told you I'm not here to babysit you and I stand by my word. But I am your friend and I care about you just as much as I care about Caitlin. So if you ever want to talk about it‚ I'm here to listen.'

'Thank you'‚ Cisco said after a beat. 'I appreciate that‚ really I do‚ Iris‚ but if I start talking about it‚ I'll stop thinking about ways to fix this. So thanks‚ but no thanks.'

'Okay'‚ Iris said gently. 'So is there anything I need to know about Caitlin's mom?'

Cisco sighed. 'Well‚ let's start with the fact that Caitlin hasn’t spoken with her in three years. When her husband got sick‚ mama Tannahauser immersed herself into finding a cure for his disease. She didn’t, and along the way‚ she forgot that her daughter might need her mother when her father died.'

'That's horrible.'‚ Iris said around a wince.

'Yup. So doctor Tannahauser has no idea. She didn’t know Ronnie‚ she doesn’t know he died‚ doesn’t know Caitlin works with the Flash‚ nothing.'

'But Caitlin still went to her for help‚ instead of us.'

'Don’t judge her for that.'‚ Cisco told her quickly. 'It was the smart thing to do because Tannahauser did a lot of work in cryomedicine. It was also… a typical Caitlin thing to do. She doesn’t know how to ask for help. She went to her mother because whatever happened between them‚ she is still her mother. Unconditional love and all that.'

Iris sighed. 'I didn’t know any of this.'

'Don’t let that get to you either'‚ he said quickly. 'It's not that Caitlin doesn’t love you‚ or considers you a very good friend‚ it's just that she doesn’t tell this part of her life to virtually anyone.'

'She told you.'‚ Iris pointed out.

Cisco shook his head. 'I pretty much forced it out of her using emotional blackmail after Ronnie died the first time. I wanted to help her‚ and she wouldn’t let me, so I yelled, and she yelled and then she broke down and told me everything. We've been best friends ever since.'

It took a while for Iris to say something.

'Do you have a way of bringing Caitlin back?'

Cisco bit on his lower lip. 'I have 70% of a way and a crazy idea. Hopefully‚ Tannahauser will fill in the gaps.'

»«

Doctor Tannahauser didn’t want to see them. She actually called security on them‚ and when they tried to push Iris towards the door, Cisco saw red.

'My name is Cisco Ramon and I'm on the Central City Police Department payroll as a metahuman consultant and specialist and a mechanical engineer for all the highly complicated tech the police need when fighting the metas. So trust that it is not complicated for me to get a warrant.'

He turned towards the receptionist. 'And you should trust me when I tell you that Doctor Tannahauser will want to talk to us. Because this is about her daughter and you've met her‚ haven’t you? A few weeks ago‚ when she came here?'

The woman nodded at that.

'She's in trouble and her mother is the only person in the world who can save her right now. And if Caitlin dies‚ or worse‚ that will fall on your hands. Because you stopped us from getting to her mother. So pick up the phone. And let me talk to her. Trust me‚ she'll want to help.'

It took a few beats‚ but the woman picked up the phone and she extended it to Cisco without another word.

'I have Killer Frost locked up for her safety as much as the Flash's.'‚ he said without introduction into the phone. 'I need your help to bring Caitlin back.'

Funny enough‚ security escorted Cisco and Iris up to Doctor Tannahauser's office. Who was waiting for them with a cold glare and a snarl.

'Who the hell even are you and what gives you the right to imprison my daughter?'

'She's safe.'‚ is what Cisco stared with. After that he introduced himself and started explaining everything. Briefly and without details.

The woman seemed to be stuck over the fact that Caitlin was working with the Flash‚ which was ridiculous to Cisco‚ considering he knew how much Caitlin always wanted to help through her work. He said as much.

Tannahauser rolled her eyes. 'And look where that got her.'

'Look‚ lady'‚ Cisco lost all his patience. 'I don’t have the time to sit you down and explain to you how much we love your daughter‚ and how long it took us to teach her that she was capable of loving us. Now‚ she's fighting this _impossible_ thing. Killer Frost is Caitlin's biggest fear‚ and she can't fight it. So it's up to us.'

The woman was looking a little wide eyed. 'And how do you plan on doing that?'

That was the best he was going to get.

'I developed power dampening technology. She's wearing a pair of cuffs now and they're working. I'm hoping you can take that technology and make it smaller. Spinal implant‚ maybe?'

Tannahauser took a deep breath. 'I'm going to need to see the schematics for those cuffs. And while I do that‚ you're going to tell me how the hell my daughter got involved with the Flash.'

Cisco felt hope and it was a glorious feeling. He shared an excited and satisfied smile with Iris‚ then got to work.

»«

It took three days.

During those days‚ Barry texted a lot and he called Iris after every time he spoke to Frost‚ because she kept trying to get into his head. She was only mildly successful.

Julian called Cisco on day two‚ which was surprising. But he kept looking over the files Killer Frost showed him when she kidnapped him and even though he was not a medical doctor‚ he had a theory‚ based on a CT scan that showed increased activity in certain areas of the brain. He thought that was an indication of Frost's presence‚ and Tannahauser agreed.

There was a decision to make. They could stick to the initial plan‚ a spinal implant that will stop her powers and stop Frost from taking over. Or they could change it to a neural implant‚ targeting the areas in the brain that Frost influenced specifically. Thus‚ she would be still able to use the powers‚ but it would be Caitlin in control‚ not Frost.

It should have been Caitlin's choice‚ but they couldn't ask for her opinion.

Caitlin's mother thought they should go with the spinal option and be gone with Killer Frost once and for all.

She was the only one who had that opinion.

'I've been thinking of something'‚ Barry said over skype. 'A few weeks ago‚ when… The Flash was trapped in that mirror. And your cooling system didn’t work.'

'You think it was Caitlin'‚ Cisco breathed out.

'It's the only explanation'‚ Barry nodded. 'And what if… What if the Flash finds himself in the position of needing her powers again? And she can't help him? Caitlin would hate that. And it's selfish of him to expect that of her, but-'

'She'd feel guiltily'‚ Iris agreed. 'And it would eat at her.'

'I'm her mother'‚ Tannahauser suddenly exploded. 'This is my decision.'

'It's really not'‚ Cisco said easily‚ 'considering you don’t know the first thing about Caitlin right now.'

Tannahauser looked affronted‚ but she didn’t actually say anything.

'We're doing the brain implant and you're going to help us‚ because she's your daughter and you want her back.'

He might have been too harsh‚ because Tannahauser was throwing him a new sort of look‚ Barry was frowning and Iris went as far as putting a comforting hand on his shoulder.

»«

After Tannahauser designed the implant‚ Cisco had to go back to Star Labs because he had the resources to build it there. Caitlin's mother wanted to come along and be there for the surgery.

Neither Cisco nor Iris found it in themselves to prevent her from doing that.

»«

It took another two days for Cisco to make the implant and to find a doctor willing to perform this very invasive surgery.

And all the while‚ they had to live with Killer Frost's anger. Because she was furious‚ that they were going to do this.

Cisco understood it‚ on some level. They were virtually killing her. But she also virtually killed Caitlin, so he didn’t feel that bad for it.

He felt scared‚ that it wasn’t going to work. Anxious and second guessing every single thing he did to the device. He had a panic attack in the bathroom at Star Labs and it was the first one in years.

Barry found him‚ sitting on the floor of the bathroom‚ still clutching to his chest even though his breathing was back to normal.

'How long have you been in love with Caitlin?'‚ he asked gently after he sat down next to him.

Cisco laughed. 'A long time‚ I think. I don’t even know.'

'Does she know?'

He didn’t even think about that before‚ didn’t give himself the luxury to. But…

'Probably. Frost knew‚ so…'

Barry bumped their shoulders together. 'It's going to be alright. This is going to work, we're going to get Caitlin back and then you two will talk about it.'

Cisco laughed again. 'No‚ we're not going to talk about it‚ because if it were Caitlin, it would have never happened. And I'm okay with that. I've… I've always been okay with that.'

Barry clearly didn’t believe him‚ but Cisco was too tired to argue. He still had a lot of work to do before her surgery‚ so he let Barry help him off the floor and went back to his workshop.

»«

'What happens when you screw up and I die? When Caitlin dies?'

Frost was snarling when it was time for the surgery. Her words were harsher than ever‚ and Cisco was sure he wasn’t the only one hurting.

The last thing she said before going under the anesthetic was directed at Cisco.

'You're killing Caitlin and you're going to have to live with that‚ Cisco. Do you honestly think you'll be able to live with that?'

Cisco knew that was a big fat _no_. But this was something they needed to do because if Killer Frost took over forever‚ Caitlin was gone either way.

At least with this implant‚ there was a chance of getting Caitlin back. And Cisco was holding on to that chance if it was the last thing he'll ever do.

»«

The surgery took a fantastically painful 17 hours.

Barry and Iris napped around Star Labs. Wally and Joe took turns bringing them food. HR kept bringing them fresh coffee.

Caitlin's mother went in and out without looking at them or talking with them.

Cisco didn’t close an eye. He didn’t work on anything either‚ he was pretty useless. He prayed‚ thought‚ which was something that even if he learned to do on a very young age‚ he gave up on it years and years ago‚ when he understood science was more plausible than divine intervention.

But now‚ he found himself praying. In his desperation‚ he would have done anything for Caitlin.

»«

They realized Caitlin was awake because of the sudden drop in temperature in the med lab.

When Cisco turned around‚ he saw ice pooling at Caitlin's bed‚ starting from her hands. He said his name and she gasped awake‚ looking straight at him.

Glaring at him.

She lifted one of her hands and she didn’t hesitate in making an icicle and throwing it at him. Thankfully‚ Cisco had the idea to wear his gauntlet, just in case.

It was a brilliant idea‚ considering the pieces of ice that fell at his feet after he shattered the icicle with a mild pulse of vibrations.

Caitlin screamed‚ but it was a broken sound‚ no hint of anger in it. The temperature in the room returned to normal and Caitlin turned to her mother.

'What did you do?'

'They made me do it‚ sweetheart'‚ the woman seemed too afraid to get close to Caitlin‚ even if she wanted it. 'I wanted to do a spinal implant to block the powers forever‚ but they made me do a neural implant that lets you keep the powers but-'

She stopped talking because Caitlin started sobbing. Cisco couldn’t handle that‚ so he took a few steps forward until he was standing next to her bed.

'We stopped _her_. Killer Frost will never come back again. You'll have the powers‚ yes‚ but it will be you in control. Always you‚ Caitlin.'

Her eyes grew very wide. 'Cisco'‚ she breathed out. 'You… Her… that night…'

'It's fine'‚ he smiled quickly at her‚ going to grab for her hand.

'Don't touch me!'‚ Caitlin all but screamed and Cisco's heart broke into a million pieces.

But even through the pain‚ and even through the tears forming in his eyes‚ he respected Caitlin's wish. So he backed out of the room‚ urging Doctor Tannahauser to check on her daughter.

Barry and Iris were quick to follow him out‚ and Iris took no time to wrap him in her arms. He returned the hug and sniffed against her shoulder a couple of times‚ but refused to talk about it.

»«

Caitlin was fine. There were no more traces of Killer Frost in her mind‚ her brain activity returned to normal‚ there was no lingering side effect from the brain surgery‚ she was up and about under the strict guidance of her mother.

And she didn’t want to speak with Cisco. She told Iris that she wasn’t ready for it yet.

It hurt Cisco to even see her‚ so he barely went out of his workshop anymore and nothing Barry or Iris said could have made him feel better.

»«

Caitlin went home and her mother left town.

Caitlin said she was going to stay home for a couple of more days‚ resting.

Caitlin said that she will think of designing a lab that will help her train her powers.

Caitlin said that she still didn’t feel strong enough to talk with Cisco.

Cisco didn’t even know what that meant‚ he just knew that it hurt.

A lot.

»«

He tried calling. Caitlin didn’t pick up her phone‚ no matter how many messages he left.

He tried e-mailing. He never got an answer.

He texted her several times a day‚ various ways of saying _please talk to me_. He only got one answer‚ in which Caitlin promised that she will‚ but that she needed more time.

Cisco really didn’t think she needed more time.

Caitlin probably thought they needed to have a conversation about that time Killer Frost had sex with Cisco while she was in Caitlin's body. About how Cisco had feelings for her and about how Caitlin didn’t return them.

Cisco really did not think they needed to talk about that. From where he stood, he knew all of that so they just needed to find a way to ignore it and move on with their lives like it never happened.

Cisco didn’t want to lose Caitlin's friendship. He couldn’t handle that and he was going to fight for it‚ keep fighting for it.

Whatever it took‚ to keep Caitlin in his life.

»«

A week after she left Star Labs‚ two weeks after her surgery‚ Cisco straightened his shoulders and knocked on Caitlin's door.

She seemed surprised to see him on the other side of it‚ and she just blinked slowly at him for a while.

Caitlin looked good‚ a whole lot better than when she came out of surgery. There was a healthy flush in her cheeks and her hair was still on the lighter side‚ but more brown than blonde. She was wearing a pair of leggings and a huge pink sweater‚ that was clearly too thick for what the weather necessitated‚ but Cisco knew that her body temperature was now lower than a normal human being's.

'Hi'‚ he finally breathed out.

Caitlin gulped and shook her head. 'I can't do this yet‚ Cisco.'

'I know'‚ he was quick to nod. 'I know you can't do this‚ but that's why I'm here‚ Caitlin. Cause I don’t think we _need_ to do this.'

'How can you say that?'‚ she whispered incredulously.

'We don’t need to talk about it'‚ his voice was a bit too high pitched but he was pretty desperate by this point. 'We can ignore what happened and never talk about it and‚ Caitlin‚ I just… I just miss my best friend.'

'Oh god‚ Cisco.'‚ she breathed out shakily‚ before turning around and heading into her apartment.

He took that as an invitation and closed the door behind himself‚ before following Caitlin into her living room. She was sitting very stiffly on the couch‚ with her hands placed firmly on her knees and her big eyes trained on them.

Cisco slowly sat down on the coffee table‚ mostly in front of Caitlin. She didn’t look up‚ but she didn’t yell at him to get out‚ so he took a deep breath and spoke as calmly as he could.

'I don’t need to talk about it‚ Caitlin. I really don’t. I… I could have lived the rest of my life without ever talking about it. I'm… I'm sorry that you found out and I know it's going to be hard for you‚ but I'm … begging you to please‚ Caitlin‚ find a way to move past this.'

She finally looked up at that‚ and Cisco smiled at her.

'Losing your friendship is the last thing I want to do‚ Caitlin. It's more important than… anything that has ever happened.'

She started crying at that‚ kind of shocking Cisco into silence.

'You were raped'‚ Caitlin said slowly‚ 'and you don’t want to talk about it? You want to forget it? To act like it never happened?'

'Uhm'‚ Cisco was even more shocked. 'It wasn’t… rape. Really. I mean‚ I…'‚ he had to look away. 'I consented to it.'

'You consented thinking it was me'‚ Caitlin was getting riled up. 'But it wasn’t me‚ she lied to you and-'

'She played me‚ I know'‚ Cisco sighed. 'And I should have seen it‚ but I was stupid and wrapped up in…. you'‚ he looked away again. 'And that is something I have to live with‚ but… It wasn’t rape.'

But as he said it‚ he realized something. If Caitlin thought he was raped‚ then… so was she.

'Unless you feel like you were raped.'‚ He breathed out‚ horrified. His instinct also told him to move away‚ put some distance between them‚ give her the space she needed. But he fought against the instinct‚ and stayed put.

It was a good thing‚ because Caitlin reached for him and grabbed his hand‚ wrapping their fingers together.

'I don’t feel like that'‚ she said in a whisper. 'I am just… so _mad_ ‚ Cisco. That she took that away from us.'

He didn’t really understand‚ and it might have shown on his face.

'She took our first time away from us‚ Cisco.'

Caitlin smiled at him‚ still shakily and with tears in her eyes‚ but Cisco didn’t really understand what she was talking about. Because it sounded like…

'I never thought it would actually happen'‚ he said quickly before he could second guess himself. 'Cait‚ I was never going to say anything about… how I felt.'

She frowned. 'Why?'

'Because I love you so much'‚ he said easily. 'You're my best friend in the whole world. In… every world and every Earth that we've seen.'‚ he chuckled at that. 'And I'm not going to let anything change that. I will do everything in my power to always be your best friend. But I… can't do that alone. You have to want it too.'

'Of course I do'‚ her answer was quick and truthful, Cisco didn’t doubt it.

'Then, please, Caitlin. Find some way to get past this.'

'The thing is'‚ she took a deep breath before looking him straight in the eyes‚ 'I don't want to.'

'I… I don’t get it.'‚ he admitted after a beat.

Caitlin smiled at that‚ looking to their still clasped hands and biting on her lower lip.

'Killer Frost said that love is easily manipulated. And she's right. It's just that…'‚ she looked up at him. 'She didn’t just use your love against you. She used mine too.'

'I'm so sorry this happened to you'‚ Cisco breathed out. 'But she's gone now. She's never coming back and she's never going to screw up your life again.'

'You still don’t get it'‚ Caitlin smiled.

Cisco looked to her desperately‚ because he thought he did. Mostly. Kind of.

She bit on her lower lip again‚ and Cisco's eyes fell to it. He knew he should control himself and not… do that. He was here preaching for the best-friend approach and this was very much not like that.

'God‚ Cisco'‚ she breathed out. 'I kept you away these past weeks because I couldn’t stop thinking about that night.'

His jaw dropped.

'And not in the way you obviously think'‚ she went on. 'I…Cisco‚ even before Killer Frost took over‚ I found myself wanting it. That… I-'‚ she chuckled‚ flustered and awkward.

'I found myself wanting you'‚ Caitlin said and fireworks exploded everywhere.

In Cisco's brain‚ in his stomach in his chest‚ behind his eyelids and between his lips.

'You don’t mean that'‚ he breathed out‚ because she didn’t.

There was no way. Caitlin never… No indication‚ no words‚ no actions. There was no way she meant that.

She was just… confused now. Because that night happened and because Killer Frost might have enjoyed it‚ so she was probably just confused by it.

That was it.

But Caitlin kissed him next and it really didn’t seem like she was confused.

She didn’t let go of his hand‚ but she put her other one on CIsco's jaw‚ gently bringing his face to hers. When their lips met‚ Caitlin whimpered‚ a little‚ such a soft sound‚ and she closed her eyes‚ pushing her body closer‚ just a tiny bit closer.

Cisco was frozen in place‚ not believing this was happening‚ believing this was happening because Killer Frost was back somehow‚ that the implant wasn’t working‚ that-

And then Caitlin said his name‚ whispered it against his lips. She also squeezed his fingers and took a deep breath‚ that Cisco felt against his chest.

'Really?'‚ he asked. 'Are you sure?'

She pulled back at that‚ opening her eyes and taking her hands off him‚ putting them back on her knees.

'I was so scared of it. As you said‚ of my feelings screwing up our friendship.'

'You have feelings for me?'‚ Cisco couldn’t really believe it. It felt… impossible.

Caitlin got up and paced around the living room for a while‚ finally stopping on the other side of the couch‚ putting it between them.

'Cisco'‚ she said slowly but strongly. 'I have had feelings for you for a long time‚ I think. I just realized it when I was … dating Jay.'

He breathed out at that‚ looked away from her‚ ran his hands through his hair.

'I'm gonna go'‚ he found himself saying.

Cisco got up and headed half way to the door‚ before turning to look at Caitlin. She looked devastated‚ and he hated it‚ but this was something he needed to do.

'I can't do this if you're not sure'‚ he started explaining. 'I can't… get you now‚ only for you to change your mind later on. I mean‚ I am not going to forcefully keep you by my side forever'‚ he backtracked‚ 'if you'll ever want to leave me‚ that's fine if it's for something I did‚ I mean-'

'Cisco'‚ she cut off his rant.

'I need you to be sure'‚ Cisco pleaded. 'Please‚ Caitlin‚ please make sure this is what you really want‚ that this isn’t … just a side effect of Frost or of that night or… something else. Please‚ just take some time‚ all the time you need‚ to make sure you really want… me.'

Caitlin was still crying‚ but Cisco saw it in his eyes‚ that she understood it‚ understood him. She nodded‚ and he left‚ spending the rest of his day pushing down all his emotions and ignoring the phantom feeling of his lips against hers.

Iris saw right through him‚ and she didn’t even ask‚ she just stated it.

'Something's happened.'

Cisco laughed‚ a bit brokenly‚ but he also found himself talking. He didn’t even realize how much he wanted to talk about it‚ until he did. He said everything he needed to‚ told Iris everything. Barry came into his workshop too‚ at some point.

When he was done talking‚ he had to blow his nose and wipe his face.

Iris was looking a little wide eyed. 'I didn’t realize it was this… big.'

Cisco nodded at that‚ because‚ yeah.

'I did'‚ Barry said after a beat‚ making both Cisco and Iris turn to look at him.

'No‚ really'‚ Barry went on. 'I've been thinking that since the moment I've met you‚ when I woke up from the coma.'

He started grinning‚ slowly but giddy with excitement.

'You're gonna be great together.'

Cisco shook his head. 'She might change her mind. Realize this is just some weird side-effect of-'

'She won't change her mind'‚ Barry patted Cisco on the back. 'I'm sure of it.'

Cisco was too afraid to get his hopes up and believe him.

»«

Two days later‚ Caitlin send him a text a little after midnight‚ that she found a really cute coffee shop two blocks away from Star Labs and if he was interested in getting coffee with her in the morning.

Cisco accepted the invitation and didn’t close one eye the entire night.

»«

Caitlin was already there when he got there in the morning. She was still wearing clothes just a little bit thicker than they should be‚ but she looked ready for work in high heels and a pretty dress.

She also had two cups of coffee on the table in front of her‚ so Cisco grabbed one of them as he sat down across the table from her.

'Wow'‚ he gulped, surprised. 'This is some really good coffee.'

'I know‚ right?'‚ there was an excited spark in her eyes. 'I'm thinking about actually writing up a catering contract between them and Star Labs.'

Cisco chuckled at that‚ but… 

'So you're coming back to work?'

She nodded‚ smiling. 'And I'm coming back to you too‚ if you'll let me.'

Caitlin had a blush on her cheeks but once again‚ Cisco knew she was telling the truth. He could see it in her eyes.

'What does that… actually mean? Like… for real. What would that presume happening next?'

She chuckled fondly‚ shaking her head and getting up from her chair‚ coming to his side and grabbing his hand.

'Next‚ you're going to let me kiss you‚ for as long as I feel like it‚ until I convince you that this… is what I want‚ truly and without any … exterior influences.'

Cisco was probably blushing. And he was definitely gaping like an idiot.

'And after that?'

Caitlin smiled‚ tilting her head.

'After that‚ you're spending the day in my bed. One way or another. Be it watching The Walking Dead with me‚ or… something more entertaining.'

Cisco playfully narrowed his eyes. 'I don’t know how you're going to find something more entertaining than The Walking Dead.'

She threw him a look. It was superior‚ but very playful and slightly… hot.

Cisco did not look away from Caitlin as he speed dialed Barry.

'Dude. Caitlin and I won't be coming in today.'

'Why?'‚ Barry asked in concern.

'We'll both be there tomorrow.'‚ Cisco went on.

Barry paused for a second. 'Dude'‚ he said with feeling.

'Hang up'‚ Caitlin said sweetly.

'Dude'‚ Barry said again‚ with a lot more feeling.

Cisco hung up and he barely had time to shove his phone in his pocket‚ before Caitlin's lips were on his and her hands were on his shoulders.

They didn’t kiss for long‚ because it didn’t take long for Cisco to accept this, that Caitlin really wanted him‚ wanted to kiss him and hold him and be with him.

He kinda had to stop kissing her because he was grinning too wildly.

»«

When they got to Caitlin's apartment‚ they both glared at that arm-less armchair. They also both looked dubiously towards the bedroom.

'Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea'‚ Caitlin said. 'Let's go to your place?'

Cisco tilted his head‚ thinking. Then‚ he smirked.

He also picked Caitlin up‚ ignored her screeches‚ and carried her to the kitchen where he safely deposited her on the table. He kept grinning at her‚ as he slowly moved his hands under her dress‚ scratching the skin lightly and stopping just at the band of her panties.

'I am suddenly feeling very warm.'‚ Caitlin whispered with shaking knees and half-closed eyes.

Cisco was a good friend‚ and he will do his best to be an ever better boyfriend‚ so he eagerly helped Caitlin out of her clothes.

»«

Later‚ Cisco was sitting on a chair at the table‚ and Caitlin was sitting on the table‚ with her legs on Cisco's shoulders and her hands in his hair.

The sounds she was making were driving him crazy‚ and it was the best type of crazy that Cisco has ever felt. And when she said his name in synch with her thighs shaking‚ Cisco thought he never wanted anything else but this sort of delicious crazy.

Then he vibed something.

»«

It wasn't something new‚ he has seen this scene before. Earth 1 in the future‚ Cisco in a tux‚ taking off Caitlin's gorgeous wedding dress.

But there was a slight change from what he had seen before.

Now‚ Caitlin turned to Cisco and kissed him slowly as she took off all of his clothes. When they were both completely naked‚ he wrapped his arms around her waist and pushed his face into the crook of her neck.

'Do you think we would have got here if it wasn’t for Killer Frost?'‚ Caitlin asked while she pushed her fingers into his hair.

Cisco sighed. 'I really don’t wanna talk about Killer Frost tonight.'

She hummed‚ but Cisco knew her well enough to know that she was still thinking about it.

So he kissed the skin closest to his lips and started slowly walking them towards the bed.

'I think we would have ended up here no matter what. With or without Killer Frost‚ you and I would have always ended up together. Together forever. So.'

He got to the bed and gently threw her on it‚ lowering himself between her legs.

'So can we stop talking about Killer Frost and get this show on the road?'

Caitlin snickered at that‚ but she also wrapped her legs around his waist and kissed him strongly.

»«

When he came back to the present‚ Caitlin was watching him curiously.

'What did you see?'‚ she didn’t seem as frightened as the last time she asked that question.

Cisco kissed her‚ first. 'I saw something amazing. But you're going to wait a while for it.' 

Caitlin didn't seem that bothered by it.

»«

When they got to Star Labs in the morning‚ Barry hugged them both so tightly‚ Cisco heard ribs cracking.

'Your babies are going to be so cute'‚ Barry said. 'And they're gonna have the Flash as a god parent.'

'It's a little too early for that‚ buddy.'‚ Cisco managed to croak out.

Caitlin snorted. 'Plus‚ I already promised our first born to Felicity.'

Cisco rounded on her. 'Did you? Did you really?'

She nodded‚ grinning.

'When?'‚ Cisco insisted.

'Oh‚ a couple of weeks ago.'

She said it so easily‚ so unconcerned that she was admitting to thinking about having babies with Cisco weeks ago.

Cisco just had to kiss her then‚ ignoring the way Barry was still screeching excitedly and Iris was cooing. He thanked Killer Frost in his mind‚ quickly and briefly‚ before giving Caitlin his full attention. As he will always do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> While writing this, I only once managed to write Killer Frost three times. All the other times it was Killer Vibe of Killer Flash or something else. So lemme know if I missed to fix some of those :))


	17. The Cold

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Snart turns up at Star Labs, not dead. He reunites with his team and with Sara, and he and Mick talk to Caitlin about her powers.
> 
> Captain Canary reunion. Killer Frost issues. Felicity POV. After Invasion!  
> More of a Legends fic, but it fits in this collection too :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> guess who rewatched all of Legends and fell into the captain canary shipoping hole?  
> I don't even know what this is. sorry.

It was about a month after the Dominators invasion. Somehow‚ Team Arrow got into a bit of a break‚ Prometheus and the Vigilante were keeping their distance.

So Felicity hopped on a train to Central City.

She didn’t like how she left things there. Cisco and Barry might have been mending their relationship‚ but Caitlin wasn’t mending anything. Barry told Felicity everything that happened with Killer Frost‚ but she didn’t think that Caitlin was dealing with the issue.

Felicity didn’t know if she could help in any way‚ but she wanted to. If nothing else‚ she wanted to talk to Caitlin about it‚ because she had a feeling the boys didn’t do that.

Team Flash welcomed her with warm hugs. Cisco started talking about updates Felicity could do on their system and Barry and Iris thought she could talk to Wally‚ maybe he'd be more open to taking advice from someone on Green Arrow’s team.

So she was in the Cortex when weird things started happening.

»CC«

Caitlin was in her lab‚ Barry and Cisco were working on something in the workshop and HR was writing in his room.

So Felicity was all alone in the Cortex when he came in.

Tall guy‚ lithe and wearing all black‚ tight clothes‚ beautiful blue eyes and a pair of goggles hanging from his neck.

'Who are you?'‚ the guy said slowly‚ frowning at her.

'Who are you?'‚ Felicity countered‚ freaking out. 'How did you get in?'

'A nice and deadly lady opened the door.'

He sounded incredibly sarcastic. Even if Felicity couldn’t see any weapons on him‚ her _stranger danger_ alarms were still blearing in her head so she pushed the intercom button.

'Guys! Help! Now!'

Barry was there in a flash‚ and he stared at the guy with wide eyes.

'You died!'‚ he spluttered. 'Ray said you died!'

'It's as big of a surprise for you as it is for me'‚ the guy drawled out.

'But it's really you? This you‚ not a different Earth version of you or a shapeshifting metahuman or-'

The guy was looking at Barry like he was a troubled child.

'Oh my god!'‚ Barry finally yelped‚ before flashing and wrapping the guy in a hug.

He looked like he swallowed something sour‚ but didn’t push Barry away. He didn’t hug back either and said 'Enough‚ Barry' in a growly voice.

That's when Cailtin and Cisco rushed in. The new guy took them both by surprise.

'How?'‚ Cisco breathed out. 'Ray said you died when the Occulus exploded.'

The guy shrugged. 'I have no idea. I woke up a week ago on a forgotten island in the North China Sea-'

'Oh no'‚ Felicity interrupted him. 'And you found an Argus prison?'

'Yes'‚ the guy narrowed his eyes at her. 'A pretty mean looking lady stopped interrogating me when I mentioned Barry's name.'

'Lyla'‚ Barry and Felicity said at the same time.

'You were on Lian Yu'‚ she went on‚ making the guy frown. 'Where Sara and the Arrow were stranded.'

He was frowning‚ but his expression cleared when he looked back at Felicity.

'Let me guess. Incredibly hot blonde chick‚ alarmingly high heels‚ various tech devices in her hands-'

Felicity frowned down at the tablet and phone she was holding.

'-and bright pink lipstick'‚ the guy smirked at her. 'You must be Felicity. Sara's told me all about you.'

She just blinked at him.

'Felicity Smoak'‚ Barry grinned at her. 'Meet Leonard Snart‚ aka Captain Cold.'

'Oh'‚ she finally understood‚ her mind going through everything Barry told her about Captain Cold‚ the short conversation she had with Ray and Sara last month.

'Nice to meet you'‚ she finally said.

He smiled at her‚ but it still looked sarcastic.

'Awh'‚ Felicity suddenly smiled‚ 'Sara thinks I'm incredibly hot?'

Of course‚ everyone turned to look‚ incredulously‚ at her. She wasn’t bothered.

'My life would have been a lot easier if I were gay'.

'Speaking of miserable love lives'‚ Snart said next‚ 'I came here because I have no way of contacting my team.'

'I can do that!'‚ Felicity yelped‚ already turning onto the closest computer.

'Wait'‚ Snart hesitated. 'I need a shower and a change of clothes.'

'I want to give you a checkup'‚ Caitlin spoke up for the first time‚ not looking at Snart even though he was looking at her. 'Just to make sure you came back properly.'

He nodded‚ slowly‚ and Cisco took him away to wash up‚ as Caitlin headed towards the med bay and started puttering around.

Felicity was left with Barry.

'Ray's gonna be happy'‚ she said.

He nodded. 'Mick's gonna be ecstatic.'

Should be interesting to see‚ Felicity thought. She was right.

»CC«

Snart let Caitlin fuss over him with a bored expression on his face. It only changed into one of interest when her labcoat rode up and he saw the cuffs she was wearing.

'Those look like a too bold fashion choice for you‚ Doc. What are they?'

'A long story'‚ Caitlin chipped stiffly.

'Does it involve some value?'‚ Snart smirked. 'Because I haven’t stole anything in _ages_.'

Caitlin finally looked up at him‚ her eyes ablaze with something very… cold.

'Do not even think about it.'

'Interesting'‚ Snart said after a beat. 'I'll step back as soon as you do.'

Caitlin sighed and took a step back‚ turning to look at Barry. 'His DNA matches the one we have on file.'

Snart turned to glare at Barry. 'You were supposed to delete every trace of me.'

'I did‚ except for this one'‚ Barry grinned. 'Good thing‚ too‚ cause now we know for sure you're you and we can trust you.'

Barry was way too chummy with Captain Cold. And Caitlin was way too cold with Captain Cold.

Cisco was the only one around acting normal towards Snart‚ but that was weird because Felicity knew he should have been mad‚ considering what Cold and Heatwave did to him and his brother.

Felicity remembered that they kidnapped Caitlin as well‚ at some point. And they tried to hurt Barry more than once.

Why was everyone acting so … unaffected towards Snark?

'You don’t need to look at me like I'm about to shoot you dead‚ sweetheart'‚ Snart smirked at her. 'I don’t have my gun and…'‚ he tilted his head. 'And quite a few people would be cross with me.'

Suddenly‚ Felicity wondered how Sara would act around Snart.

'Should I send that message now?'‚ she might have been unable to hide her excitement‚ because Snart looked to her with narrowed eyes. But he did nod‚ so Felicity sent the message.

'You probably shouldn’t be here'‚ Caitlin told him. 'They'll take it better if we explain it first. Trust me on that.'

'Me too'‚ Felicity piped up‚ remembering how bad Oliver took to Sara being alive‚ that first time around.

Snart looked at both of them weirdly‚ but he did nod and made his way out of the Cortex‚ Cisco wordlessly following him.

»CC«

Only Sara‚ Mick and Ray came down from the Waverider and Barry started explaining.

At the end of it‚ Ray looked excited‚ which was understandable. Mick looked angry‚ which was kind of understandable‚ because it was probably his default setting.

Sara looked angry‚ but she also had tears in her eyes and her right hand was shaking. That was very much not understandable.

Felicity didn’t get to ask‚ because Snart made his way inside of the Cortex. He did it slowly‚ with a smirk on his face‚ like he didn’t have any care in the world.

'Honey‚ I'm home'‚ he said cheerfully‚ eyes roaming quickly over his team.

Mick snapped‚ roaring in anger. He looked like he wanted to punch Snart‚ but Sara stepped in front of him and put her hand on his chest.

She didn’t say anything‚ but Mick calmed down, gradually.

In the mean time‚ Ray hugged Snart. Unlike the hug he shared with Barry‚ he returned this one. It wasn’t much‚ just a hand wrapped around Ray's shoulder and an eye roll‚ but Snart did look mildly fond of his team mate.

When Ray stepped back‚ Mick angrily told Snart that they will have words‚ but then he hugged him‚ and for once‚ Captain Cold eagerly returned the hug‚ tightly and pushing his face into Mick's shoulder.

It was kinda sweet.

As the hug stopped‚ everybody cleared a straight line from Sara to Snart‚ and everybody was watching her with interest‚ especially Snart.

She took a deep breath and confidently marched to Snart‚ stopping in front of him and just looking at him for a couple of seconds. Sara was glaring‚ actually‚ and Snart was smirking easily. Felicity still saw something in his eyes‚ an uncertainty that he was trying his hardest to mask.

'Assassin'‚ Snart said slowly. 'Long time no see.'

Sara nodded once and slapped Snart. A loud slap that echoed in the Cortex‚ which was a lot more dramatic than‚ let's say, a punch.

After Snart straightened back up and stopped rubbing his cheek‚ he smiled at Sara.

'I deserved that.'

Sara growled. 'Yes you did.'

Snart's eyes skipped from her to everyone else to the room, especially on Team Flash. 'How about we don’t wash our dirty laundry in the Flash's living room? I've missed the Waverider.'

'Snart'‚ Sara said strongly. 'Tell me why we're so mad.'

He blinked confusedly at her for a while. 'I would assume you're angry because I died and you've missed me.'

Sara cursed under her breath and turned her head‚ sharing a long look with Mick. When she turned to look back at Snart‚ Sara was still angry‚ but it was clear that she was in control of her emotions.

'We are not getting back to the Waverider until you _understand._ '

'Understand what?'

Sara didn’t answer. She huffed and stormed out of the Cortex. Felicity wanted to go with her‚ but Sara called for Cisco‚ who was quick to run after her.

'What the hell?'‚ Snart said‚ looking between Ray and Mick.

'You should probably take this one'‚ Ray told Mick‚ who nodded.

'Red‚ Haircut‚ out'‚ he said with authority. 'Doc‚ Ponytail‚ stay.'

Felicity shared a look with Caitlin before asking why.

'This is going to need a woman's touch.'

That… sounded pretty terrifying. But they both stayed‚ as Barry and Ray left.

»CC«

'Here's the thing‚ boss'‚ Mick started. 'I'm going to do the talking and you're going to do the listening. Okay?'

Snart didn’t seem pleased by that‚ but he nodded.

'Long story short: Rip's dead‚ Birdman and Birdlady said bye-bye‚ we picked up a couple of strays on the way and…'‚ Mick grinned manically‚ 'Birdie's in charge.'

Snart took it without blinking. 'That doesn’t explain why she looked like she wanted to stab my eye with one of her knives.'

'I said I was talking'‚ Mick snapped‚ making Snart roll his eyes, but he did nod, urging Mick to go on.

'We’re crooks, Snart. You have a code. You broke it when you forced me to leave you behind. And the team, they have a code too. And you broke that one as well.

'You were going to do it!'‚ Snart hufed angrily. 'Ray was going to do it!'

'Yeah, and believe me, she had words with us too.'

Mick turned to Felicity and Caitlin next. 'Tell him what happened with Red last month.'

Felicity was the first one to understand what Mick meant, so she started talking.

'There was an alien invasion, they're called the Dominators. They wanted Barry because he screwed with the timeline. '

Snart narrowed his eyes. 'What do you mean he screwed with the timeline? '

'He went back in time and saved his mother.', Caitlin took over. 'Created an alternate timeline, we call it Flashpoint. When he tried to fix it all again, put the timeline back to how it was before, he created multiple uh… Professor Stein said you called them aberrations? '

Snart nodded at that. 'Dumb move.'

'He knows', Felicity felt the need to add. 'Everybody yelled at him already. '

'So the aliens wanted him to pay for that.', Caitlin went on. 'His life in return for the safety of the world.'

'And the idiot was going to do it', Snart said.

'Yeah, the idiot was going to do exactly what you did', Mick pointed out.

'We didn’t let him', Caitlin said. 'We found a way to save the world that didn’t involve Barry handing himself in to the Dominators. '

Snart seemed to be thinking that over. When he spoke, his voice was a lot more subdued than before, less angry and confruntational.

'There was no way we all got out of there and have that damn thing destroyed. '

'We know that', Mick said. 'But we need to know you won’t be doing that again. '

'Fine', Snart piped quickly. 'Can we go now? '

'There’s something else', Caitlin said, surprisingly enough, looking at Snart in a curious way. 'The look on Sara’s face… I’ve seen that before. I saw in it the mirror after my husband came back to life.'

That statement was followed by an awkward silence.

'Sara and I are not married.', Snart finally said.

'But something happened.', Mick countered smugly. 'Something that made Birdie screw every skirt she could get her hands on.'

Everyone paused at that, again.

'Seriously', Mick went on, grinning. 'The Queen of France in 1600 something. '

'Go, Sara!', Felicity said because nobody else was going to.

‘And she’s wearing your ring’, Caitlin went on. She shrugged, upon seeing their confused expressions. 'I’ve noticed you wearing it when you kidnapped me, and I’ve noticed it on her finger just now. '

They all turned to Snart, waiting patiently.

'Nothing happened', he finally said. 'Something almost happened. '

'I knew it!', Felicity said before she could stop herself.

If looks could kill, Snart would have killed her by now.

'Sorry', she winced.

'So, in conclusion', Mick clapped his hands. 'You’re not gonna be an idiot again, right, boss?'

'Right', Snart nodded. 'Nobody gets left behind.'

'Which bring us to the second intervention of the day', Mick turned to Caitlin. 'What’s up, Doc?'

She frowned, as did Felicity and Snart.

'You have powers, but you can’t use them', Mick went on. 'How does that work? '

Caitlin said nothing and pointedly looked away, clearly uncomfortable. But something pushed Felicity to explain, because this was the initial reason she came, to help Caitlin. Granted, she didn’t see Captain Cold and Heatwave helping her, but…

'When Barry created Flashpoint and then reset the timeline, one of the aberrations was Caitlin getting powers.'

'Cold powers', Mick said and Felicity nodded.

'What kind of cold powers?', Snart said, clearly interested.

Caitlin didn’t answer.

'And why aren’t you using them?', Mick was equally as interested.

Again, Caitlin didn’t answer, but Felicity did.

'The more she uses her powers, the more her brain gets altered. On Earth 2, she was called Killer Frost. Evil villain.'

Caitlin flinched at that and Felicity wanted to apologize, but didn’t get the chance to because Mick started laughing.

'Are you telling me that Red, Boy-Wonder', he pointed towards the door, 'and you, with that big brain of yours, you can't find a way to stop that from happening?'

'We did', Caitlin snapped. 'Cisco did.' She lifted the sleeve of her coat to reveal the blue flashy bracelet.

'Those stop your powers', Mick said. 'I meant thinking of something to stop your brain from going to the dark side.'

Caitlin looked away, again. 'There’s no point in doing that.'

'I beg to differ', Mick said with feeling, before quickly making his way towards Caitlin. She backed away until her back hit a desk, but Mick didn’t stop. He wasn’t actually touching her, but he was invading her personal space.

'Now, you see, Doc', Mick said slowly and menacingly, 'the last time we were so _close_ , you called me sick, begged me to spare Red’s life and kill you instead and, most importantly…’, he grinned wildly. 'You were terrified.'

Caitlin said nothing. Felicity wanted to do something, but Snart was by her side, somehow, tapping her shoulder gently and shaking his head no. So Felicity stayed as quiet as Caitlin.

'You’re not scared now', Mick went on. 'Because you know that if push came to shove, you can take off that fancy bracelet and single handedly  _deal_ with me.'

Caitlin didn’t say anything, but she didn’t back down either, quite the opposite. She straightened her back, which brought her even closer to Mick’s face and chest.

'If this charade of yours has a point, I suggest you get to it.'

Mick smiled. 'You are beautiful and deadly and smart. So you should use all that to find a way for you to use your powers without turning into… Killer Elsa.'

'When you kidnapped me, you also wanted to show me who I really am.', Caitlin said a bit breathlessly. 'And what I am… is cold.'

'You say that like it’s a bad thing', Snart said, bringing everyone’s attention to him.

'Being cold isn’t so bad.', he went on with a smirk.

Mick put some space between himself and Caitlin, but she didn’t notice it, too busy staring, incredulously, at Snart.

'I tried killing the two people I care most for in the world. I hurt them and I-'

'I wasn’t talking about that', Snart shook his head. 'Killer Frost is a problem, yes, but the nature of these power... '

He looked to Felicity, for some reason. She didn’t know what she was supposed to say or do, she was very lost in this conversation.

'You need an incentive', Snart told Caitlin, 'a reason for you to try to find a solution that won’t stop you from using your powers.'

'An incentive?', Caitlin raised an eyebrow, clearly not buying.

'Cold isn’t a bad thing', Snart said again.

'I can kill a person with a flick of my wrist', Caitlin all but snapped back.

'You can also make yourself a sweet tea on a warm summer night and instantly turn it to ice tea', Snart said, shutting Caitlin’s mouth with a snap.

'You can also – Let’s say dear old Cisco gets shot. You can ice him over, stop him from bleeding out until you get him to the hospital.’

'You already saved Barry', Felicity felt the need to add. 'Twice.'

'I also almost impaled Cisco with an iceprick and kissed Barry into hypothermia.'

'You kissed Barry?', Felicity blinked.

'It wasn’t even the first time', Caitlin was incredibly mad.

'Wha-aat?'

'The point is, Doctor Snow', Snart said pointedly, 'that you can do good with these powers. And judging by what your job is', he looked to the Flash suit, 'you _want_ to do good.'

Caitlin looked away again, tears in her eyes. Snart looked, kind of pointedly, to Felicity, which prompted her to start babbling.

'I know you’re scared, and I know that neither of us really understands what you’re going through, we don’t have powers. But Barry does, and Cisco-'

'It’s different', Caitlin looked to Felicity. 'Their powers don’t bring out the worst in them.'

'Are you sure about that?', Felicity said kindly. 'Because I remember skyping with Cisco after he came back from Earth 2. After he met Reverb, and how… terrified he was of something happening that will make him turn into that. And Barry… we both know how much he struggled against killing the Reverse Flash when he had the chance.'

'Everyone has both light and dark in them', Snart said, surprisingly gently. 'It’s a matter of choice.'

'It doesn’t look like I have that choice', Caitlin said, full on crying now.

Felicity made her way to the other woman’s side and grabbed her hand.

'You have the choice to start fighting against it. As Mick said, between the three of you, I’m sure you can do it.'

'And if not, at least you tried your damnest.', Mick said pointedly.

It took a few beats, but Caitlin nodded, kind of shakily, just as Cisco, Ray and Barry made their way back to the Cortex.

Cisco was grinning, but when he saw Caitlin, his expression turned murderous.

'What did you do?', he angrily roared, gathering Caitlin in his arms.

'We were just helping, Boy-Wonder', Mick said, unconvincingly.

'Where’s Sara?', Snart asked. 'I’ve got a bone to pick with her.'

'Not yet', Barry countered. 'She wants to talk to Felicity.'

She instantly started moving towards the door, but stopped halfway through, looking to Snart and Mick.

'Thank you', she mouthed at them.

Mick winked at her, but Snart shook his head.

'You have five minutes with her', he said somewhat menacingly. 'She’s mine afterward.'

Felicity narrowed her eyes. 'You should know that Sara belongs to no one but herself.'

He smiled then, a soft and fond look in his eyes, that was very much in contradiction with his moniker.

'Figure of speech', he tilted his head.

Felicity smiled at him, shaking her head and walking out of the Cortex.

Her life was crazy, how did she always end up in this ridiculous situations? She didn’t stop to think of it, Sara was waiting for her.

»CC«

Sara was in the Speed Lab, sitting on the ground in the middle of it, with her feet crossed and fingers digging in her thighs.

It took a little maneuvering because of the dress she was wearing, but Felicity sat down in front of her.

'How are you holding up?'

'I'm not', Sara said quickly. 'Which is why I wanted to speak with someone normal.'

Felicity snorted. 'I haven’t been normal since I found a certain hooded figure bleeding in my backseat. And you know it.'

Sara sighed. 'And you know me. You know about… my love life and…'

'You need me to tell you it’s okay to get together with Captain Cold?', Felicity said somewhat incredulously.

'No', Sara sighed. 'I take my own decisions. I need you to tell me that I’m not crazy for wanting it.'

'I know you', Felicity said quickly, 'but I don’t know Snart. However, for what I’ve just seen… he really doesn’t sound as a bad idea.'

Sara didn’t say anything.

'Tell me about him', Felicity poked the other woman’s knee. 'I guess you all got close while traveling through time with your spaceship… But what makes Leonard Snart special?'

She couldn’t keep the teasing from her tone, but it was alright, because Sara smiled at her.

'I’m an assassin, and he’s a crook, and we both … evolved, a lot, on the Waverider.'

'Evolved?', Felicity frowned.

'A lot happened', Sara sighed. 'I can’t even begin to walk you through all of it. But Snart, he… he gets it. The bloodlust and the… I thought I had to kill Stein, for the better good. He stopped me from doing it. We almost died together, freezing in a locked room, and he gave me his coat and told me...', she shook her head. 'And since then, we… we just played cards, and talked, and drank together.'

'And saved each other lives a couple of times?', Felicity couldn’t help but smile.

Sara nodded. 'Until I couldn’t save his.'

'I think he gets it', Felicity said. 'Mick made a… surprisingly good point, and Snart seemed to understand that he’s not allowed to do it again.'

'That’s good, for the team', Sara nodded. 'But me, I…'

'What?'

'I don’t know if I can do this', Sara breathed out.

'Be with Snart?', Felicity needed the affirmation.

'Relationships on the Waverider, they are not easy. I saw it with Ray and Kendra.'

Felicity blinked at this new piece of information. 'I thought Kendra and Carter-'

'Yeah, which made things even more complicated. But beyond that, they… It’s hard to be in a relationship and fight side by side them.'

Felicity couldn’t help it, she laughed.

'You’re being ridiculous', she told Sara. 'I have _seen_ you fight side by side your significant others. Oliver and Nyssa. Snart doesn’t have to be any different.'

'And that’s the problem, isn’t it?', Sara sighed. 'Look at how things with Oliver and Nyssa ended. If Snart’s not any different…'

'Now I understand', Felicity nodded. 'You’re afraid of it not working out.'

'How could it even work out?', Sara said a bit more forcefully. 'We live on a time ship and travel through all times and ages fixing other people’s mistakes and fighting for our life at every turn. How could that possibly work?'

'Quite beautifully, I think.'

It was the wrong thing to say, because Sara stared at Felicity with shock and a little bit of anger.

'Sara', Felicity smiled. 'Even after everything _I’ve_ been through, I would never advice anyone to not take a shot at something… fun.'

She tilted her head. 'I wanted to say happiness, but that would have been too cheesy.'

Sara chuckled. 'Snart and I? Happy?'

'From what I’ve seen', Felicity smirked. 'He does seem to care about you. And… you wouldn’t be doubting it so much if you didn’t care about him.'

Sara groaned, hiding her face behind her hands. 'You’re right', her voice came out muffled.

Felicity grinned, pleased of herself. She also stood up and extended her hand.

'Come on, girl. You got a man to get!'

»CC«

'Look, crook, I-', was all Sara got to say before Snart was cutting her off, by wrapping his arms around her waist and lifting her off the ground, literally, so that he could kiss her.

It was a… pretty passionate kiss, from where Felicity was standing. With Snart’s fingers digging deeply into Sara’s flesh and with her fingers scratching at his scalp and jaw.

Mick wolfwhistled. Sara showed him the finger. Snart, still kissing Sara, started moving them out the door.

Felicity started laughing.

»CC«

Before they went back to the Waverider, Snart leveled Caitlin with a look.

'We’ll have a competition nest time I’m in town. Figure out which one of us is… colder.'

Caitlin rolled her eyes. ‘Goodbye, Leonard. Don’t get yourself killed again. '

Sara hugged Felicity and whispered a 'thank you' in her ear, before grabbing Snart’s hand and pulling him away.

'Next time I’m here', Mick called over his shoulder, 'call Skirt. I miss her.'

They heard the Waverider lift off a few seconds later, and Felicity collapsed, somewhat tired, in a chair.

'You guts sure do have a lot of fun here in Central City.'

'You count that as fun?', Caitlin raised an eyebrow.

'Well at least it was useful', Felicity pointed out. 'Sara hooked up with yet another criminal, two villains convinced you to start looking for a way to _stop_ you from becoming a villain…', she trailed off meaningfully.

'Yes', Caitlin rolled her eyes, a little. 'Cisco and I-'

'And me', Barry said pointedly.

'We’ll start brainstorming', Caitlin smiled.

'Cool! ', Felicity grinned. 'It’s why I came here for.'

'I knew it!',  Cisco yelped. 'You always have a reason for stopping by!'

She just blinked innocently at him, for a while. Then she got up and hugged them all, Caitlin extra strongly, and went back home.

»CC«

'How are things in Central City?', Oliver asked politely when she got back home.

'Well', Felicity said slowly, 'Captain Cold, you remember Captain Cold? He’s not dead and he knows about Lian Yu and he’s also dating Sara. I mean, I don’t know exactly how dating works on a time traveling space ship, but the making out they were doing sure does imply some form of… dating.'

Oliver was frowning, understandingly.

'Caitlin’s working on becoming a superhero instead of Killer Frost.', Felicity went on.

'That’s… good’, Oliver said slowly. 'The other thing, not so much.'

'Yes it is', Felicity argued. 'Snart cares about Sara a lot, and he’s not a villain anymore, that’s for sure, considering-'

'I meant', Oliver interrupted her, amused, 'that I don’t want to be there when Sara breaks the news to her father.'

'Oh', Felicity’s eyes grew wide. 'Oh.'

Oliver started snickering. 'They sure have a lot of fun in Central City, don’t they?'

Felicity rolled her eyes, wondering if Sara and Snart said the same things sometimes, as annoyingly adorable as her and Oliver did.  


	18. A child of ice and...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Killer Frost and Savitar had some fun while they were together. Now, Caitlin's pregnant and Barry's in the Speed Force.  
> snowbarry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> guess who's trying to get back into writing? this gal!

When she broke into Star Labs in the dead of night, Caitlin expected Cisco and Wally to get there fast. She was hoping they wouldn’t, but she expected a speedster and a breacher to get there fast.

Surprisingly enough, they didn’t. It took more than an hour for them to get there, which was just as well, because it meant Caitlin was done with what she needed to do.

When she got to the Cortex, she had to stifle a laugh. Because while all three of the West’s were dressed, Cisco was wearing Sponge Bob pajama pants and a tshirt that just said “LIT”.

They were all staring at her. It was understandable, they haven’t seen her in two months. She looked different.

While she wasn’t wearing clothes from Villains RUs, as Cisco put it, she still had a pair of black skinny jeans on, paired with a fitted white tank top and bright turquoise sneakers. Her black nailpolish was chipped, she had a chocker on her neck, that they didn’t know helped her control her powers and her hair was lighter, somewhere between blonde and brown.

She looked nothing like Caitlin Snow, but she didn’t look like Killer Frost either.

‘Boys’, she finally breathed out. ‘That response time was atrocious’.

‘You didn’t look like you were planning our deaths’, Cisco said seemingly lightly, ‘So I figure I’d wait for them.’

‘Still’, she tilted her head. ‘An hour and a half?’

‘Cisco called us 20 minutes ago’, Wally said with a little indignation.

Caitlin raised her eyebrows.

‘I hesitated.’, Cisco snapped.

She couldn’t even fault him for that.

‘Are you sick?’, Iris asked next, gently. ‘What were you doing in the med lab?’

A ping resonated in a corner of the Cortex, and she made her way to the printer set there, getting the small piece of paper with shaking fingers. Still, she straightened her back and looked back at them.

‘I thought I was sick. Turns out… I’m not.’

She turned the ultrasound towards them.

Wally was the first one to react, in a high pitched shocked voice. ‘Is that a baby?’

Caitlin could only nod.

‘How far are you?’, Cisco was the first to react, after a long, long while.

‘9 weeks’, Caitlin breathed out.

Of course, Cisco was the first to put two and two together. He didn’t say anything, but his skin got paler and he took a step back.

‘We were fighting Savitar 9 weeks ago’, Joe was frowning. ‘When did you find the time to-‘

He shut his mouth with a pop, and that was the moment when Iris and Wally understood.

‘It’s Barry’s?’, Iris asked in a shaky voice.

‘No’, Caitlin said strongly. ‘It’s Savitar’s.’

Iris started crying at that, and she rushed out of the Cortex. It took a few beats, but Joe followed her.

‘I shouldn’t have come here, I know’, Caitlin breathed out. ‘But I… I didn’t have anywhere else to go.’

That made Cisco move, rush to her side and grab her wrist, a surprisingly strong grip, but not hurtful.

‘You’re coming home’, he said strongly. ‘You need our help, you need our tech’, he indicated the med lab, ‘it’s not like any other doctor besides yourself knows anything about metahuman biology. Plus, no matter what’, he hesitated here, ‘you’re either going to need babysitters, or you’re going to need someone to come with you to Planned Parenthood.’

She cringed at that but couldn’t think of anything else to say.

‘I need to tell Barry.’

Cisco let go of her hand then, and looked away. Something dark settled in Caitlin’s chest.

‘Cisco, where’s Barry?’

It was Wally that explained, about the Speed Force and the Flash’s sacrifice. Of course, Caitlin started crying.

Cisco hugged her then, tightly, almost painfully, but it was the best thing she has felt in the past two months.

‘We’ll get through this’, he said strongly.

‘Together’, Wally nodded, smiling at her as he put a hand on her shoulder, even if she was still hugging Cisco.

‘Iris will get over it’, the young West went on. ‘It might take a while, but you’re still her friend. You’re still our friend, and we’re gonna help you through this.’

‘Damn right’, Cisco exclaimed.

Caitlin took a deep breath and she went home with Cisco. They spent the night talking, her explaining how the choker worked and how she managed to control her powers, him telling her about what happened after Barry went into the Speed Force, about how they were all coping badly with his disappearance, but trying to fight through it.

At one point, Cisco made some coffee.

Caitlin threw up the second the smell hit her nostrils. Thankfully, she made it to the bathroom, and Cisco was kind enough to hold back her hair.

‘Morning sickness?’, he asked after she brushed her teeth.

She shrugged. ‘More like, every second of the day sickness. It gets worse at certain smells, like coffee and very strong perfume. It’s why I thought I was sick, there was no distinguishable pattern.’

‘This is for real happening’, Cisco breathed out.

It was probably the moment it hit him, what it really meant. It was probably the moment it hit her, as well.

Savitar’s baby was growing inside her, she was going to give birth to the child of a man with an evil heart and Barry’s genes.

She threw up again, though if asked, she would insist it wasn’t related to her epiphany.

Caitlin fell asleep on Cisco’s couch, covered in his fluffiest blanket and wearing the thickest pajamas he owned. For the first time since Killer Frost took over her, she felt like she was home.

Or at least the closest to home she would get.

»»•««

The West’s came over in the morning. They brought a lot of breakfast, and a lot of coffee, and Iris apologized for rushing out yesterday, while giving her a cup of hot chocolate.

They were all very understanding, more than Caitlin could have hoped for. Cisco did most of the talking, making a summary of everything she told him last night.

‘Are you going to keep it?’, Iris finally asked, the question that was probably going through all of their heads.

Caitlin shook her head, quickly. ‘I don’t know. I don’t know what will happen. Will it have my powers? Will it have his? None at all? Can a metahuman even carry a pregnancy to term? I have no idea.’

As Iris opened her mouth to respond, there was an alarm coming from both Cisco and Wally’s watches.

‘Something’s happening at the lab’, Cisco said, as he reached for his gauntlets.

Before he opened the breach, though, he turned to Caitlin.

‘Well, Elsa, are you coming to help us save the day?’

It was said very playfully. On one hand, Caitlin wanted to punch him for calling her that. On the other hand, she wanted to hug him for not hesitating in treating her like a superhero, trusting her to still want to help.

She got off her chair and smirked, going as far as doing that thing she could do to her vocal chords, making her sound icy. ‘After you, Vibe boy.’

»»•««

There was a breach in the middle of the Cortex, but it looked… off.

‘That looks like-‘, Wally started.

‘Yeah’, Cisco said coldly. He didn’t explain.

They all got ready, Wally adopted a fighting stance, Cisco pointed his gauntlets, Caitlin let ice form on her fingers.

And then, in a brightly colored flash, Barry was there. Grinning wildly, like he had no care in the world.

‘God, have I missed you guys’, he breathed out.

Wally hugged him first, then Cisco, and then Barry hugged Caitlin, who still hadn’t moved.

When he pulled away, he didn’t go far, putting both of his hands on her neck and looking with concern at her.

‘Are you okay?’

‘Why would you ask that?’

‘It’s…’, Barry shook his head. ‘It’s why the Speed Force let me out. Because you needed my help.’

Caitlin only just grew accustomed to the idea that Barry was gone. She couldn’t cope with him being back, so she asked the logical thing.

‘I thought the Speed Force needed a speedster in it to stabilize it.’

Barry frowned, letting go of her.

‘It does’, he nodded, running a hand over his face. ‘Gipsy showed up, with an evil speedster from Earth 19. Honestly, I was… too glad to be out to ask more questions. How long was I in there? Time runs… differently there.’

‘A little over two months’, Wally supplied.

‘Wow’, Barry whispered. ‘It felt like a lot more than that.’

Caitlin finally looked at Barry and she didn’t like what she saw. He looked horrible. Exhausted and… he looked like he spent the last two month not taking any care of himself.

‘I should run some tests on you.’, Caitlin said.

‘That’s a great plan!’, Cisco exclaimed, overly cheerful.  ‘And you two can _talk_ during that time’, he threw her a look, ‘and then Barry is gonna run to Joe’s house, where Iris will be waiting, and then I’ll come back and help you run tests on yourself. Okay? Great!’

He and Wally left before anybody could argue.

‘That was weird’, Barry was frowning.

‘It’s only going to get weirder’, Caitlin couldn’t stop herself.

‘You need to talk to me about something.’

Caitlin nodded. ‘I promise I will, but let me check you out first, okay?’

Barry agreed.

»»•««

He wanted to know how Caitlin was doing, so as she ran her tests, she told him about how she could control her powers and how Killer Frost will never be making another appearance.

But when that was done, she hesitated.

‘Cait’, he said slowly. ‘I know something’s up. Something big, if the Speed Force was willing to let me out for it. You can tell me anything, you know that.’

She needed to tell him, so she took a deep breath and pulled off the bandaid.

‘I’m pregnant and it’s Savitar’s.’

Barry’s eyes grew wide and his jaw dropped. It was gone quickly, expression turning murderous.

‘He did that to you?’

Caitlin shook her head. ‘He didn’t force me, if that’s what you’re thinking. It was consensual. Killer Frost consented to it.’

Barry’s expression turned again, into one of pure confusion.

‘So they were…’

‘No’, Caitlin sighed. She didn’t tell the rest of the team this detail, but if anyone was allowed to it, it was Barry.

‘When Killer Frost started… faltering, she thought that maybe he will too. So she asked him, if he really was capable of killing Iris. Because he remembered loving her, she thought it might make him hesitate. Of course, Savitar said that wasn’t going to happen. And he offered to… convince her, that it was the truth. She accepted.’

Caitlin couldn’t help but remember that moment, because she did remember, she remembered everything Killer Frost did.

‘I could easily convince you’, Savitar said, coming closer to her, so close that her back hit the wall.

As he ran a finger, down her cheek, down her neck, between her breasts and down her stomach, Savitar was smirking.

‘Well, maybe not easily. Maybe slowly. Or maybe fast. However you’d like.’

Killer Frost felt a need for him, in that moment. A desperate need, that settled deep in her core, that made her take a deep breath and grab a hold of his hand, pushing it under her skirt.

‘Both’, Killer Frost breathed out, making Savitar grin wildly.

He looked beautiful to her in that moment and she wanted him. So she took him. For not at all the reason he thought.

‘Cait’, Barry brought her back to the present.

‘Your test results look normal. You’re a bit dehydrated and underfed, but that’s an easy fix. And you should probably sleep.’

He was looking so incredibly lost, she hated putting that look in his eyes.

‘Go home, Barry’, she smiled at him. ‘Be with Iris. And tomorrow, we’ll all talk about it.’

‘But-‘

‘Really’, she insisted. ‘Iris misses you like crazy, as I’m sure you do too. Go to her, please.’

‘It doesn’t feel right’, Barry admitted, not once looking away from her.

Caitlin shook her head. ‘That’s what I’m most afraid of. That this will get between you and her. And I don’t want that. Barry, this… this child is not yours. And it’s not mine either, really. But whatever happens next, it’s going to be our choice. You and me and Iris and… probably Cisco because there’s no way he’s going to shut up about it, and Joe will share his gentle wisdom and Wally will probably crack a joke and disguise an opinion in it, but…’

‘They’re our family’, Barry said when she didn’t go on. ‘And they want to help.’

‘Exactly’, Caitlin smiled. ‘So go home to them, alright?’

‘You’re going to run those tests on your own?’

Caitlin tilted her head, letting her powers expand. ‘There’s someone in Cisco’s lab, I’m guessing he stayed behind to help me.’

Barry headed for the exit, but he stopped after a few steps.

‘One more thing. I… I know things now, I think the Speed Force gave me knowledge.’

‘What sort of knowledge?’

‘Well’, Barry gulped, looking at a fixed point on the ceiling. ‘I think I know how to write the code for Gideon, I have a feeling I’m gonna have to get in touch with the Legends soon because the time aberrations-‘

He stopped, shaking his head, and then he looked at Caitlin.

‘And I know, that if a metahuman has a child, that child will inherit their powers. When there’s two metahumans, either one of the powers can manifest.’

Caitlin figured as much, but it was nice to get confirmation.

‘Tomorrow, Barry’, she said. ‘We’ll deal with it tomorrow.’

He left, even though Caitlin knew he was hesitating. She went to the med lab and Cisco appeared quickly enough.

‘So, on a scale of 1 to losing your virginity in the back of your dad’s truck, how awkward was that?’

Caitlin threw a pencil at his head. ‘You promised to forget I told you about that!’

Cisco kept laughing, but he did help her run every test she could think of and at the end of the day, she felt strong enough to go back to her apartment, which, unsurprisingly, was kept in perfect condition. Cisco probably convinced Wally to speed through the dusting. She was incredibly grateful.  

And she was grateful that Barry was back. Whatever was going to happen next, Caitlin knew she will not get through it without him.

»»•««

They all cornered Caitlin in the morning. It looked like an intervention and she was mildly uncomfortable.

‘We talked’, Barry said, ‘and this should be your choice. It’s your body and if you keep it, you’re going to want to be its mother, aren’t you?’

He didn’t give Caitlin enough time to even think before he started speaking again.

‘And whatever you choose, we’re going to be here for you. We’re going to love the baby, not because he’ll have the Allen good looks’, he grinned cheekily, ‘but because it will be _your_ baby, and we’ll love it as much as we love you.’

Caitlin felt like crying, really, but she couldn’t afford to get side tracked.

‘But what about what you told me yesterday?’

Barry’s good mood didn’t waver.

‘I mean, whatever powers the kid inherits, I think between you, me, Wally and Cisco, we can handle it.’

‘Do you even want kids?’, Cisco said, a bit pointedly. ‘Because I know for a fact that Ronnie hadn’t managed to convince you before.’

Caitlin stared at him with wide eyes. He wasn’t wrong, but…

‘I’m not the same Caitlin, am I? And this Caitlin…. Yes, yes I want this.’

‘Are you sure?’, Cisco insisted, searching her eyes.

She didn’t have to answer because even after all the changes she has been through this past year, he still knew her.

‘It’s settled then’, he started grinning. ‘Operation mama Snow is a go!’

That had everyone laughing, and Caitlin crying. It was okay, though, because everyone was quick to hug her.

»»•««

A lot of things changed over the next months.

For starters, Barry was back. That meant that the Flash was, once again, running alongside Kid Flash, saving the day. Vibe helped them when he needed to, Caitlin and sometimes, Iris and Joe keeping track of everything from the Cortex.

Caitlin never went out with them to save the day. Not because she didn’t want to, but because they were all very protective of baby Snow, as they started calling it.

They were also very protective of Caitlin. They were all ready to jump at her beckoning, be it with cups of warm tea or foot rubs. She was mildly annoyed by it, and trying her hardest not to take advantage of it.

Barry was… Their relationship changed, a little.

Barry had changed in the Speed Force, that much was clear. He was just a little bit harsher, a little more ruthless, which was a good advantage in his battles. But with Caitlin, he was the opposite of that.

There was always love between them, they had a good friendship. But now he was gentler, more caring, he more easily showed his affection, hugging her a lot more and smiling at her as often as he could.

It hurt Caitlin, a little, because there was nothing more she wanted right now, than Barry to actually be the father of the child.

But that was impossible. Barry had Iris and what Caitlin had now, it was good.

It was as good as she was going to get, so it was perfect.

»»•««

That was a lie, apparently.

Caitlin was four and a half months pregnant when Iris announced she was moving to National City to work for the Daily Planet.

‘So what?’, Cisco frowned. ‘The Flash is moving to National City?’

‘No’, Barry breathed out.

When they all stared confusingly at him, Barry looked down as he spoke.

‘Iris and I are over. Definitively.’ His voice quivered, and he shook his head. ‘I can’t do this’, he told Iris, and then he was gone.

Iris explained. With tears in her eyes and anguish clear, that she wanted children, always had, always will, but that she couldn’t cope with the thought of having a child with powers, of being the only one in the family to not have powers.

It all sounded like a flimsy excuse to Caitlin.

‘This is because of me’, she said out loud.

Iris turned, horrified, to her. ‘I promise, it’s not. This is because of me and, honestly, because of Barry. He changed, in the Speed Force. He’s not the man I fell in love with anymore.’

She kept on explaining, and Caitlin listened to her, but it still didn’t make sense to her.

And then Iris left, with a heartfelt promise to stay in touch, and Caitlin was left with Cisco, who seemed just as confused as her.

‘Where’s Barry?’, she asked.

‘Half way through to Star City.’, Cisco frowned. ‘He must be jogging.’

‘Good’, Caitlin nodded. ‘He’s going to talk with Felicity, that always does him good.’

That didn’t mean that she didn’t wait for Barry to come back, and Cisco waited with her.

»»•««

‘Guys, I’m fine’, was the first thing Barry said, and neither of them believed him.

But after he took off his suit, Barry did start talking.

‘Iris is right, I did change in the Speed Force. I’m not the man she fell in love with and-‘

‘That’s ridiculous!’, Caitlin all but exploded. ‘You’re a bit rougher, sure, but you’re the same. You’re loving and caring and set on doing the right thing-‘

‘And I’m not in love with Iris anymore.’

That shut Caitlin up.

‘You’re right, too’, he told her. ‘I’m still the same Barry, with you and with Cisco and Wally and Joe. But because I’m not in love with her anymore, she sees me as a different man. So she’s right. And this… It’s going to be good for her, moving away. She’s safer there.’

‘Maybe it’s better for you too, then’, Cisco said, hesitantly. ‘If you really don’t love her anymore.’

‘Oh I love her’, Barry chuckled. ‘She’s still one of my best friends. But that’s it.’

He turned to Caitlin. ‘Please don’t think you’re to blame. Trust me, you’re not, I promise.’

Of course she trusted him. With time, she’ll start to believe him.

‘And since we’re on the topic of truth’, Barry breathed out, looking, for the first time, with hesitance at her.

‘I want… I want to be baby Snow’s father. Truly.’

Caitlin might have stopped breathing.

‘I _am_ the baby’s father, even if… Yeah, we weren’t the ones having sex’, he chuckled, ‘but it’s mine as much as it’s yours. And I want to be a part of that, raising it and caring for it and be there the first time it laughs and goes on it first date and at the first prom and goes away to college and everything. Not as Uncle Barry, but as its father.’

‘You’re insane’, was all Caitlin thought of saying.

Barry snorted at that, pulling a funny face. ‘Does that mean you don’t mind?’

Caitlin started crying. ‘You idiot, of course I don’t mind.’

He hugged her, then, tightly and Caitlin breathed a huge sigh of relief.

‘If we’re on the topic of truth’, she started.

‘Nuh-uh’, Cisco interrupted. ‘Me first! I found you a doctor.’

That shut her up, because they’ve been looking for two months and no doctor was willing to deliver a metahuman baby.

‘Earth 47 doesn’t have a Flash’, Cisco started. ‘It has metahumans, but no Flash, because Doctor Henry Allen never married. He focused on his career, and now he’s the best metahuman doctor in the country.’

‘That sounds perfect!’, Barry said, excitedly.

‘It sounds painful for you’, Caitlin grabbed a hold of his hand.

Barry just shook his head. ‘Not as painful as giving birth to a baby will be for you. I can handle it.’

‘I’ll take a trip to Earth 47, then’, Cisco said cheerfully. ‘Make an appointment with Dr. Allen.’

‘Wait!’, Caitlin yelled. ‘I want you to hear my truth!’

Both of the men were looking at her expectedly.

She walked over to the computer and pulled up an image. It was her latest ultrasound, that she took in the morning.

‘Looking healthy there, baby Snow’, Cisco snickered.

He clearly didn’t see it. Barry didn’t either.

‘Guys.’, Caitlin started grinning. ‘Baby Snow is going to be a boy.’

Cisco yelled at that, running at the monitor and staring, this time where he should be. He then started laughing, running back to Caitlin and hugging her tightly, lifting her off the ground.

He didn’t linger for long, though, and it was a good thing, because Barry was making his way towards her and he looked like he was close to crying.

She was the one to hug him this time, and Barry didn’t mind, tucking his face into the crook of her neck and being careful with her bump, always ever so careful.

‘I can finally start buying the baby stuff!’, Cisco was saying in the background. ‘He’s gonna need a Flash onesie, and a Green Arrow one and I’m gonna visit Kara and get him a Supergirl one and-‘

Caitlin ignored him, as Barry was chuckling.

‘Hey’, she whispered so that Cisco wouldn’t hear. ‘I’m sorry you lost Iris.’

‘I’m not’, he answered. ‘How could I regret anything, when it all came to this?’

Caitlin was inclined to agree with him.

»»•««

Things changed again after that, of course they did.

On one hand, Caitlin moved into a bigger apartment, closer to Star Labs, and Barry promised to help her decorate the nursery.

On the other hand, Caitlin was there when Barry told Joe that he was going to be a grandfather, for real. That made the older man very happy, saying that he knew Barry was going to do the right thing. But when Barry told him the baby was a boy, Joe actually started crying, and after he shared a long hug with Barry, he hugged Caitlin too and kissed her forehead. He also whispered a ‘thank you’ that Barry didn’t hear, and really, Caitlin couldn’t think of any answer to that.

Those weren’t the only things that changed.

She kept getting bigger and bigger, her feet and back hurt a lot more, and the frequency of toilet trips was getting absolutely ridiculous. But she was healthy, as Dr. Allen kept telling her at every checkup, and the baby was healthy as well.

Cisco did, in fact, start buying the baby things. Ridiculous things, like socks that looked like sneakers and tshirts with puns and toy cars that, of course, he upgraded. She tried to get Cisco to stop, but she had a feeling Barry kept urging him on, in secret.

Her relationship with Barry shifted again, he became even more affectionate towards her. But now, things took a domestic turn.

Barry walked her home every night (walked, not ran), and sometimes he’d stay over for a movie or a tv show, rubbing her feet or her back or whatever hurt that day, cooking her dinner and snuggling with her on the couch. He was there some mornings as well, bringing her a healthy breakfast before he had to run to work.

He painted the nursery, but only after they chose the colors together, and he went shopping with her for furniture and clothes and diapers and she lost count pretty early on, of whom paid for what and who owed who money.

Caitlin felt awkward, because in all of those child stores, all the employees thought that they were together, that they were a couple. The first couple of times, she corrected them. But after a while, she didn’t. Barry didn’t say a word, he kept on nodding along and Caitlin really didn’t know what to think of it.

»»•««

The shortest baby related conversation they ever had was in relation to godparents.

‘Is there even a question?’, Barry raised an amused eyebrow.

Caitlin tilted her head. ‘The question is, which one of us is going to ask Felicity and who’s going to ask Cisco? Also, how mad is Oliver going to be?’

»»•««

A moment that Caitlin will never forget came when she was six and a half months pregnant.

Her mother came to visit, which was a shock in itself, and they were actually getting along, which was a miracle. But, even more surprising, and even more of a miracle was the fact that her mother actually liked Barry, even after he told her he was the Flash.

So, one evening, Caitlin was lying down on the couch with her feet up, the only position in which her back wasn’t hurting. Barry was sitting on the floor against the couch, comfortably listening to Caitlin’s mother tell him embarrassing childhood stories.

At one point, Caitlin felt the need to interrupt her.

‘Mom, what would my name have been if I were a boy?’

Her mother raised an eyebrow. ‘You know that.’

‘I do’, Caitlin smiled. ‘Barry doesn’t.’

She threw her mom a look, and considering how she looked to Barry next, she might have understood.

‘Well, it’s a sort of tradition in our family. So Caitlin was named after her father’s mother, but if she would have been born a boy, she would have been named Charlie, after my father.’

‘That’s nice’, Barry said around a smile.

He didn’t get it, only after a few looks Caitlin’s mother threw him. When he did get it, he quickly turned to look at her, kneeling on the ground and going as far as grabbing a hold of her hand.

‘You don’t have to do that’, Barry said quickly.

‘I know’, Caitlin smiled. ‘But I loved Henry. And he loved me. And if he were here, he would have loved this baby more than he has ever loved anything else, even more than you.’

Barry was pretty much crying.

‘Henry Snow-Allen’, her mother said. ‘It has a nice ring to it.’

Barry didn’t even turn to look at her, so after the older woman left the room, Caitlin boldly put her fingers through his hair.

‘We don’t have to’, she said softly. ‘If you think it’ll hurt you-‘

‘It won’t’, he quickly shook his head. ‘It won’t.’

‘Then it’s settled.’, Caitlin smiles. ‘Henry Snow-Allen.’

Barry started really crying harder at that, even as he was laughing. He did something new, next, something he had never done before: he laid his head on her belly, pressing his ear to it and breathing shakily.

It wasn’t awkward. It wasn’t awkward at all.

It was kind of perfect.

»»•««

One month before her due-date, Barry showed up late one night and told her that he couldn’t do this anymore. Instantly, Caitlin was terrified.

Barry saw it, and he gently guided her to the couch, sitting down next to her and tightly holding her hand, looking borderline desperate.

‘Please, I have a question and I need you to tell me the truth.’

Caitlin nodded, how could she not?

‘Why did Killer Frost sleep with Savitar?’

Needless to say, Caitlin really didn’t want to answer that question.

‘I mean, was it all her? Did she really do it just to check Savitar’s … loyalty? Or was it… were they having fun? Did they actually like each other? Or maybe…’

He gulped and stopped talking.

‘Maybe what?’, Caitlin whispered.

Barry’s bottom lip was quivering. ‘Was it all Killer Frost? Or did it maybe… was it some of it you too?’

Caitlin knew the answer to that question. Killer Frost knew it too, even before she agreed to sleep with Savitar.

It was quite logical, really. Killer Frost was Caitlin, she was every bad thought and instinct that Caitlin ever had, amplified and targeted where it hurts the most.

Caitlin has always been attracted to Barry. And if she wouldn’t have known that he was hopelessly in love with Iris, she maybe would have made a move, sometime in the past.

She knew he wasn’t hopelessly in love with Iris now.

And she knew, that they were about to become parents, and in order to raise a child together, they needed to trust each other.

She thought they already had that.

If anything else, she thought they’d have trust issues because of her powers and her control of them. She didn’t think this would be a problem.

But she had to tell him.

‘It wasn’t all her’, Caitlin finally said, taking her hand out of his hold.

He didn’t say anything, clearly waiting for a further explanation.

‘Killer Frost is just the worst parts of me, Barry. Everything she did, it started from me.’

Barry took a long while to answer, and when he did, he was almost whispering.

‘What does that mean?’

‘Do I really have to spell it out for you?’, Caitlin was suddenly exhausted.

When Barry spoke next, he was talking very fast. So fast, Caitlin barely understood it.

‘I know what it means, because it’s the same thing with Savitar. He was me, Cait, at his core. So he slept with you because… because that’s something that has gone through my mind. And god, that sounds horrible, but I… I love you. You know I love you, but it’s more than that. I don’t want to just be the father of your baby, I want to be your partner.’

He stopped here, to take a deep breath, which also reminded Caitlin to breathe.

‘And I know what you’re gonna say, you’re gonna argue that this, that I’m feeling this just because of the baby and that’s not true. I swear, it’s not. I… When I came out of the Speed Force, if you weren’t pregnant, I would have broken up with Iris either way and I swear I would have done anything and everything to make you fall in love with me.’

Again, he took a deep breath and Caitlin copied him.

‘I’m still going to do that, Cait. However long it takes, I’m going to try my very best to make you fall in love with me because I love you and I’ve been falling for you since the moment I stepped out of the Speed Force and maybe even before that, really, and I want to be your partner in every sense of the word and I know we’re doing it in the wrong way, first we have sex but it’s not actually us, and then we get pregnant and then we start dating and-‘

‘Breathe!’, Caitlin told him with authority.

He did, Barry took a deep breath, and then another and then he just stared at Caitlin.

It didn’t take long for Caitlin to make up her mind. Because she knew Barry, and she knew he was telling the truth. And Caitlin also knew herself, she knew she loved Barry.

But most of all, she knew that they owed it to their unborn child, they owed him to him to at least try.

‘I really want you to kiss me right now’, Caitlin admitted. ‘And I want, everything you said, I really do, I love you too. But Barry, I can only think of one thing right now.’

‘What’s that?’, he breathed out quickly.

‘That if you plan on sleeping over, you’re gonna have to take the couch because there is no where I’ll be able to share a bed right now.’

It took a second or two, before Barry moved. And when he did, he did it very slowly. He smiled at first, then he moved up the couch until he was as close to Caitlin as he could get, and he grabbed a hold of her hand and squeezed her fingers tightly, using his other hand to gently grab her cheek.

‘Really?’, Barry whispered and Caitlin couldn’t help but smile.

‘If we’re going to start dating, we should probably do it before out baby is born. A month is cutting it a bit close.’

Barry chuckled at that, and took a deep breath before he finally, finally!, kissed Caitlin.

Baby Henry started kicking soon after, and they had to stop the kissing. It wasn’t the first time the baby kicked, but it was different now, it felt different, and it made both of them grin.

»»•««

The next morning, they came into the Cortex grinning wildly (Barry), blushing slightly (Caitlin) and holding hands.

Wally and Cisco both whined, as Joe started laughing.

Then they both preceded to hand Joe money. Apparently they had a bet going on, whether or not they were going to get together before or after the baby came.

Joe won and he was awfully smug about it.

»»•««

Barry moved in with Caitlin the next week. He slept on the couch, because she wasn’t lying when she said she couldn’t share a bed.

But he was an immense help. It was getting difficult for Caitlin to do mundane things, like wash the dishes or vacuum, but thankfully, the Flash took care of that in a heartbeat.

He also took care of her, pairing every kind act with a kiss and a smile.

»»•««

Caitlin’s contractions started in the middle of a mission, of course. So it was just her and Cisco in the Cortex.

She managed to turn off the microphone before Cisco started freaking out.

‘I’ll manage the comms’, she yelled at him. ‘You need to get Dr. Allen.’

‘I’m not leaving you here alone!’

Somehow, that’s the moment when Joe stepped in.

He looked between them for a second before his eyes grew wide, but he recovered quickly.

‘I’ll manage the comms’, he told Cisco, ‘Go get Dr. Allen.’

Cisco left quickly enough and honestly, it was just another 20 minutes before Barry and Wally came back, time in which Caitlin did nothing but take off her shoes and lay down on a bed in the med lab.

Wally was the one who freaked out, whereas Barry calmly got her the power dampening cuffs (it was just a precaution) and helped her change into a hospital gown.

Then he sat down on a chair next to the bed, and grabbed her hand, kissing her knuckles before he started talking.

‘Are you in a lot of pain?’

She shook her head. ‘Not right now. It’s… I’m well within parameters. You know, you should probably send the boys home. We could be here for a while, my mom was in labor for 20 hours.’

Barry grinned wildly at that.

‘Cait, this is my kid too. He’s going to hurry up.’

»»•««

The baby did hurry up, it only took a couple of hours and Barry was by her side every step of the way, not once letting go of her hand.

When her cries were replaced with the first cries of a new born, Star Labs resonate with the loud, very loud, happy screams of Cisco, Wally and Joe.

Barry would have probably joined them, if he were able to take his eyes away from his beautiful baby boy.

And if he were able to stop crying.

‘You could kiss me, you know’, Caitlin said gruffly. ‘I did just do all the work, it’s the least you could do.’

Barry was quick to oblige.

»»•««

The next month was absolutely crazy.

They were both exhausted and in a phase Cisco called _sleep deprived crazy_ , but Henry was… everything, really. He had his father’s eyes and his mother’s mouth, he liked it when his dad ran with him around the house, faster than humanly possible (but not as fast as he could have, Caitlin made sure of that), and he liked grabbing a hold of his mother’s hair as she was feeding him.

Cisco also discovered that Henry liked being in the Cortex. He was visiting one day, when the baby wouldn’t calm down whatever his parents did. In a desperate attempt, Cisco and Barry took the baby for a walk and a while later, Caitlin received a video of Henry peacefully sleeping in the middle of the Cortex, on a desk right next to Cisco, who was typing away at the computer as he guided Wally through the city.

»»•««

Caitlin and Barry went on their first date when Henry was two months old. They left him with Joe and Wally for the night, and they were both too anxious to be away from Henry to actually make an effort with their date.

So they ate quickly and went to pick Henry up. Joe didn’t let them have the baby, he yelled at them to take a break from being parents and act like the stupidly in love couple that they were.

He slammed the door in their faces so, dejected, they made their way to the closest park and just… sat on a bench. In silence.

After a couple of minutes, Barry wordlessly ran off, coming back with a box of donuts that she liked from that place across town, and with cups of coffee (decaf, because she was still breastfeeding).

They ate in silence and after that, Caitlin sighed and pushed herself to Barry, snuggling up to him without hesitation.

He swore under his breath then, and kissed her. And really, he didn’t stop until Joe called them and said it was acceptable to come pick Henry up.

That night, Barry slept in Caitlin’s bed, with his arms wrapped around her, taking turns when Henry cried during the night, like they always did.

Caitlin didn’t let him go back to the couch after that, but she was pretty sure that he was fine with it.

»»•««

The first time they have sex, they don’t plan it.

Henry was six months old, and they managed to fall into a routine. The baby spent his days in the Cortex, while her parents took turns saving the city. They’d both give him a bath in the evening, take turns reading him a bedtime story before he’d fall asleep.

Some nights, Barry had to go back out.

But tonight was not one of those nights. So they had dinner on the couch, some show running on the tv, and Caitlin took a nap.

When she woke up, Barry kissed her without any prompting and he didn’t stop for a long, long while, longer than ever before.

‘Sorry’, he whispered when he did stop, clearly embarrassed.

Caitlin could only shake her head before she kissed him. They didn’t really talk about it, even if it was clear that Barry was hesitating. He thought she wasn’t ready, probably, but she did manage to convince him that she was.

They made love and after the moment, Caitlin couldn’t help but think about how different Barry was from Savitar. Their bodies felt the same against hers, but in every moment they touched, Caitlin could feel the love Barry felt for her, whereas with Savitar, she didn’t really feel much, she just saw lust and excitement.

Later in the night, when Henry started crying and it was Barry’s turn to take care of him, he stumbled around the bedroom at a normal speed, cursing under his breath.

‘You better be grateful, baby Henry. Daddy’s putting on pants just for your sake.’

Caitlin laughed very loudly at that and when Barry came back to bed, she kissed him sweetly for his troubles.

»»•««

Henry’s first word was _slow_ , and he said it because his dad was pushing the stroller too fast down the road.

He never lived that down.

»»•««

The Snow-Allen extended family had a long running bet going on, for years and years.

The bet ended when Henry turned 10 and after a very nasty storm, even if no lighting hit him, his powers manifested.

He could run. Run fast, very fast, superhuman fast, as fast as his dad.

Barry and Joe won that bet.


	19. (Not so) Sleeping Beauty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Cisco comes back from Earth 57 with a baby in his arms, there's no doubt in Caitlin's mind that her best friend just became a father. It takes a little while longer for her to accept becoming a mother.
> 
> KillerVibe - Accidental baby acquisition.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THIS GOT OUT OF HAND REAL FAST. it's 14.500 words and really, I think this could have been more fluffy. but, still, it isn't that angsty. s'cute, i wike it. it also has surprise! plots feat olicity and mild captain canary because why not?!

By now, Caitlin knew exactly how Cisco having a vibe looked like. The way he froze for a couple of seconds, the way his eyes didn’t focus on anything that was in front of him, the interested/confused look he got on his face. It wasn’t something new for Caitlin, after all these years.

But this, this looked like something else. Because Cisco actually lost his balance, Caitlin had to all but catch him and guide him to a chair. His pupils were dilated, his breathing was erratic and he was sweating.

The vision also took him a bit longer than usual, a full minute.

‘I’m fine’, was the first thing he said.

‘You don’t look fine’.  Caitlin’s fingers were pressed to his neck, his pulse was over 120. ‘You really are not fine.’

Cisco batted her hand away, going as far as grabbing her wrist. He didn’t say anything, he just looked at her, looked intently into her eyes. It was odd, to say the least.

‘Dude’, Barry said, startling them both. ‘What did you see?’

Cisco shook his head, letting go of Caitlin’s wrist but eyes lingering on her face.

‘Earth 57’, Cisco breathed out. ‘A … breacher needs my help.’

He took a deep breath, finally looking to Barry. ‘And I need yours.’

Caitlin bristled. ‘I’m suiting up too.’

She was getting better with her powers, a lot better. Barry even took her out in the field a couple of times and she didn’t make one single mistake.

‘Please don’t’, Cisco said in a surprisingly soft voice. ‘Not this time.’

It shocked Caitlin into silence and she did not say another word until the boys left.

Because since she came back, since Barry came back from the Speed Force, Cisco has always had her back. He was the first one to seek her out after she left, he came to her at the bar, he did his thing, concealing an emotional plea with several bad jokes, and he convinced her to come back to Team Flash.

And since then, Cisco has helped Caitlin train her powers every day, offering an understanding shoulder at the end of the day, acting like she never left, like nothing happened. And beyond that, Cisco kept pestering Barry to take Caitlin with him on missions, always arguing, very loudly, that she was ready and she was strong enough.

So if Cisco thought she wasn’t ready for whatever waited for him and Barry on Earth 57, then Caitlin wasn’t going to argue with him.

She will, however, wait for her boys to come back home. And prepare for the worst.

”•‟

It only took three hours for Barry and Cisco to come back.

Barry came through the breach first, carrying several disturbingly colorful bags and a devastated look on his face.

‘What happened?’, Caitlin asked, urgently. ‘Where’s Cisco?’

‘Right behind me’, Barry put the bags on the ground. ‘He’s fine.’

Caitlin frowned at the bags. ‘Is someone visiting?’

Barry flinched and looked away from her. He didn’t get to answer, because Cisco came through the breach.

And with him, came noise. Loud, screeching, noise.

The only reason why Caitlin didn’t cover her ears was because she caught sight of Cisco. He was holding something in his arms, something small and wrapped in an orange blanket. Something that was moving.

‘Cisco’, she shrieked. ‘Why are you holding a baby?’

‘She hasn’t stopped crying for the last hour’, Cisco said in a rush. ‘I tried feeding her, changing her diaper, burping her, but she won’t stop.’

Caitlin just stared.

Cisco was crying, she realized. There were tears running down his cheeks and he was not looking away from the baby girl he was holding so gently.

‘Cait’, Barry said gently, ‘can you check her over?’

That snapped her out of it, and Caitlin was quick to take the baby from Cisco’s hands. He didn’t hesitate, but he didn’t take his eyes off the baby either, concern clear. So Caitlin took an extra second to touch her fingers to Cisco’s wrist, for reassurance.

Wordlessly, Cisco nodded.

”•‟

Thankfully, Caitlin still remembered how handling babies worked. She did do a lot of babysitting in college, but that was quite a few years ago.

Still, the baby stopped crying halfway through the examination. Caitlin kept a running commentary of what she was doing, every now and then slipping into the cute voice everyone used around babies, and the baby seemed to enjoy it, because she kept her eyes on Caitlin.

‘How is she?’, Cisco clearly rushed through changing out of his suit, because his tshirt was wrong side out and one of his socks was pulled over the hem of his jeans.

‘She’s fine, Cisco’, Caitlin said. ‘Blood tests are still running, but she seems fine. Perfectly healthy for a baby her age.’

‘She’s seven months old’, Cisco said softly, handling Caitlin some things.

A new diaper, a pair of tiny jeans, a tiny body suit and even a pair of tiny sneakers. Caitlin wordlessly took them and kept talking to the baby as she dressed her.

When she was done, Cisco took the baby in his arms, expertly holding her against his chest.

‘You wanna tell me who this is?’, Caitlin smiled at him.

‘No’, Cisco breathed out, anguish clear.

Barry made his presence known, then. ‘Why don’t I take Aurora while you two talk?’

‘Aurora?’, Caitlin smiled. ‘Like Sleeping Beauty?’

‘Yeah’, Cisco breathed out. ‘It means _dawn_ in Latin, from the Roman goddess of the morning.’

‘That’s sweet’, Caitlin said as Barry walked away with the baby and kind of pointedly shut the door of the lab behind him.

She turned to Cisco, who was already watching her with a lot of hesitation.

‘Cisco’, Caitlin said as gently as she could. ‘What happened to Aurora’s parents?’

‘Her mother died at birth’, Cisco looked at his feet. ‘One of those freak 1% cases that nobody could have predicted.’

‘And her father?’

‘I didn’t go to Earth 57 because of a breacher. He wasn’t just a breacher.’ Cisco looked up. ‘He was… Vibe. My doppelganger.’

Caitlin couldn’t stop the surprised sound that came out of her throat.

‘She’s…’, she couldn’t finish that thought.

‘Yeah’, Cisco breathed out, making his way to a chair and heavily sitting down in it. ‘It’s a long story.’

Caitlin wasn’t sure she needed to hear the story, knowing the baby had some of Cisco’s DNA was information enough for her. But Cisco was visibly distressed, and she hasn’t seen him shaking this hard since the aftermath of the particle accelerator explosion. So Caitlin took a deep breath and made her way to Cisco’s side, pulling up a chair in front of him and going as far as taking his hand.

Cisco held onto it strongly, eyes quickly catching Caitlin’s. He was crying and as much as it scared her, it broke her heart more.

‘Tell me’, she said softly.

‘On Earth 57, Oliver didn’t come back from the island after 5 years. He came back years after the particle accelerator explosion and … it wasn’t Oliver anymore. He was… mad’, Cisco’s voice shook.

‘I saw him, Caitlin. There was nothing left in him, nothing of the Oliver we know. He wasn’t human anymore.’

Cisco sighed, looking away from Caitlin, eyes going to where their clasped hands were laying on his thigh.

‘He killed everyone. Barry, Wally, Iris, Joe, Laurel, Digg, Felicity. He cut out Felicity’s heart and mailed it to Star Labs. All in the past week. And so many other people, so many caught in the crossfire. Vibe was the only one left, and he knew he couldn’t beat Oliver, so he called me.’

‘And you beat him?’, Caitlin whispered.

Cisco nodded. ‘He shot Vibe. Five arrows, straight to his chest. Barry and I managed to restrain Oliver, but only after.’

There were tears rolling off Cisco’s cheeks, and he took a moment to wipe them with the sleeve of his shirt.

‘He begged us to kill Oliver. He was dying, Oliver was in shackles, and Vibe was still terrified. And after I’ve seen what that Oliver did, so was I. So I killed him. I vibed until all the bones in his body shattered.’

Caitlin gasped at that, but she also hugged Cisco, because he was shaking, very badly. He tucked his face into the crook of her neck and wrapped his arms tightly around Caitlin’s waist.

It was the first time he killed someone, and it was a monster wearing a friend’s face.

‘Vibe died in my arms’, he whispered shakily. ‘He told me about Aurora and he… I promised him, Cait. I promised I’d take care of her.’

Of course he did. Even without hearing this story, Caitlin knew that Cisco will raise Aurora like she was his.

She saw it in his eyes the second he stepped out of the breach. He might not have planned to be a father now, might not think he was ready for it, but there was no doubt in Caitlin’s mind that he was going to try his hardest.

‘You did the right thing in bringing Aurora here’, Caitlin told him gently, but with enough strength to make him believe it. He needed to hear this.

‘She was all alone in his apartment. He didn’t have anyone who could stay with her while he … died a hero.’

‘He was alone’, Caitlin said in a rush, ‘but you’re not. You’re not alone, Cisco, and we’re all here for you and for Aurora. I promise, you and Aurora won’t ever have to be alone.’

He started crying harder at that, but Caitlin didn’t try to stop him. Instead, she just held Cisco for as long as he needed.

Still, after he calmed down and detached himself from her hold, there was one thing she had to ask.

‘You didn’t tell me who Aurora’s mother was.’

Cisco quickly looked away from her. ‘Things are going to get complicated if I tell you that.’

Caitlin drew in a sharp breath, instantly understanding. ‘It was… Caitlin, wasn’t it?’

Still without looking at her, Cisco pulled a picture out of his pocket and handled it to Caitlin. It was a small picture, worn down. But there was no mistaking the people in it.

Cisco was sitting on the floor in what looked like Star Labs, back against the wall and a medical table to the side.

He had shorter hair. Almost shaved off the sides and fluffy up top, curls falling to the side, the ends colored white. There was a tattoo peeking around his neck and one of his arms was fully covered in tattoos, but Caitlin couldn’t make out what they represented.

Cisco was looking down at Aurora, which he was holding very gingerly. The baby was dressed in a red Flash onesie and she was younger, younger than she was now.

Next to Cisco, Earth 57’s Caitlin was not sitting on the ground, but she was squatting to be at the same level as him. Her hair was fully white, Killer Frost white, but it was cut at the shoulders.

None of this shocked Caitlin. What did shock her was the look the other Caitlin had in her eyes. While in the picture Cisco was looking at Aurora with eyes filled with love and awe, that’s how the other Caitlin was looking at Cisco.

‘You told me Sleeping Beauty was your favorite Disney princess growing up’, Cisco said very gently.

Caitlin snorted, giving the picture back to him. She couldn’t stand to see it anymore.

‘They named their child after a Disney princess?’

Cisco shrugged. ‘I always liked mythology, maybe he did too.’

‘Or he just went with it to please Caitlin?’

‘Or that’, Cisco smirked, finally looking at her. Still smiling, he grabbed a hold of her hand and squeezed it once.

‘Let’s not make this awkward, okay?’

Caitlin smiled back at him, taking a deep breath. ‘Of course.’

She will try her best to not make it awkward. She was also pretty sure that it wasn’t going to work.

”•‟

Back in the Cortex, Barry had been planning.

Joe was apparently digging up Iris’ old crib from the attic while Iris and Wally were already shopping for supplies.

‘I’ll drive you home’, Caitlin was quick to say.

Cisco shook his head. ‘Not tonight, please.’

Even though it hurt Caitlin, she understood it. He needed time to process the information that on another Earth, they were married and had a child. Frankly, Caitlin needed some time as well.

So with a parting hug to both Cisco and Barry, with a quick smile thrown at Aurora, Caitlin went home.

”•‟

She tried not to think about it, but she did. Caitlin couldn’t sleep, tossing and turning and thinking about Cisco.

Things changed since she came back from her frosty sabbatical, as he called it. Of course things changed, but their relationship changed, in a somewhat significant manner. She could feel it.

Cisco has always been there for her, he has always stood by her, lending a helping hand, a shoulder to cry on or a person to share a bottle of tequila with.

And the faith he showed in her and the way she controlled her powers now, it was somewhat expected. It also meant the world to Caitlin.

He meant the world to her.

It has always been like that. Well… almost like that.

Cisco has always been important to Caitlin.

She liked him since the moment she shook hands with him, and she loved him since the moment Ronnie walked into the apartment they shared and, with a grin, declared that Cisco was his new best friend and that he was sure Caitlin was going to love him too.

But it was different now.

Because now, Caitlin had to smile every time he touched her, even if it was just a friendly tap on the shoulder. Now, every time Cisco smiled at her, Caitlin’s mood instantly lifted. Now, she got excited every time she saw his name flash on the screen of her phone.

Now, she noticed which pants fitted Cisco better, she knew every stitch in the Vibe suit, she involuntarily kept track on the days Cisco washed his hair. She noticed when he got new cologne, she caught herself staring at his fingers when he tinkered with his tech and she always had to look away when he was eating candy in the Cortex.

Caitlin has always loved Cisco. And she was always attracted to him, low-key.

Now, it wasn’t low-key.

Now, it wasn’t the brotherly love she felt when they were working on the particle accelerator.

Now, it wasn’t the type of love she felt for their partnership when they helped Barry become the Flash.

Now, Caitlin wanted Cisco. She wanted to try and be together with him, in the true sense of the word. It has been in the back of her mind for a long time, but now, after she came back, she managed to acknowledge it.

Everything was about to change, again. Aurora was going to change things.

Caitlin followed her instinct and called her mother, not realizing that it was 4AM. But, after she made a cup of tea, Caitlin’s mother did listen.

‘Okay’, she said when Caitlin was done. ‘But I don’t understand why you called me, sweetheart. Do you need me to give your friend baby raising tips?’

Caitlin shook her head. ‘Do you… Do you think I’d be a good mother?’

The older woman froze for a second, and then she frowned.

‘You didn’t tell me you were seeing Cisco.’

‘I’m not’, Caitlin sighed.

‘But you want to?’

‘Maybe. It’s… it’s been different since I came back. Maybe we could have, but now… If he thought about it before, he’s not going to be thinking about it now. Aurora is going to be his priority.’

‘The baby’s name is Aurora?’, the older woman was smiling.

Caitlin couldn’t help but return it. ‘She’s lovely. And she has his eyes.’

‘I can’t tell you what to do, Caitlin’, she said gently. ‘But I just ask you to think about it, before you make a decision. Being a mother is not something you choose to do over night, and I can see it in your eyes, that you want to be Aurora’s mother.’

Caitlin didn’t say anything, because it was the truth.

‘And about Cisco… Honey, if there’s one thing I know, is that you can do anything and everything you set your mind to. So if you want that ridiculous boy who once answered your phone by saying _Yo, Doctor T. Doctor S can’t come to the phone right now, she’s too busy making me sweet heavenly spaghetti, woohoo_ , if you really want that boy, Lord help me, go get him, Caitlin.’

While that made her smile, it wasn’t enough.

So Caitlin waited a few more hours, and at 7AM she texted Felicity, who didn’t hesitate to skype her back.

Felicity was sitting at her kitchen table, still in pajamas, with a cup of coffee in front of her, and there was a guy puttering around in the background. Caitlin couldn’t help but notice his great ass.

‘Am I interrupting something?’, she asked with her eyebrows on her forehead.

The guy turned around and leaned down over Felicity’s shoulder. It was Oliver, which only made Caitlin’s shock grow.

‘Good morning, Caitlin’, he easily smiled. ‘Do you want me to leave you two to your… girly talk, or do you mind if I do the dishes in the background?’

Caitlin got over it quickly, she was sure Felicity will bring her up to date later.

‘How about you grab a chair’, she told Oliver, ‘and sit down for a minute?’

He frowned at that, but did as asked.

‘What’s up?’, Felicity asked kindly.

Caitlin took a deep breath and told them. She wanted to leave out the part about evil Oliver, but they both insisted on knowing who the villain was. It shook them both, Caitlin could see it in their eyes, as well as she could see that they were holding hands, but in true Felicity and Oliver fashion, they took it in stride and focused their attention on the baby.

When Caitlin was done talking, Oliver was frowning deeply, and Felicity had a weirdly excited look in her eyes.

‘Cisco is keeping the baby, isn’t he?’

Oliver’s head quickly snapped to Felicity when she said that.

‘Yeah’, Caitlin couldn’t help but smile. ‘Of course he is.’

Felicity grinned at that, while Oliver turned to look at Caitlin, clearly surprised.

‘He will?’

Caitlin nodded. ‘He… The second he stepped out of the breach holding a crying baby, I knew he was going to do it. I could see it in his eyes. He’s… He already loves Aurora to the moon and back.’

Felicity cooed. ‘Her name is Aurora?’

‘Like Sleeping Beauty?’, Oliver was smiling, slightly.

‘That was probably other Caitlin’s doing, considering I loved Sleeping Beauty growing up.’

Felicity giggled at that, but she sobered up quickly enough.

‘Caitlin, why did you call? I mean, you probably should have let Cisco tell us and it’s not like it’s a time sensitive problem, no reason for _you_ to call me at 7 in the morning.’

Caitlin hesitated, wondering if she should say what she wanted with Oliver there. But Oliver _was_ there, in Felicity’s kitchen, clearly having spent the night, holding Felicity’s hand and kindly looking at Caitlin.

If she couldn’t trust the Green Arrow and his girlfriend with matters of her heart, then really there was no hope in the world.

Caitlin laughed at the thought, but it came out sounding bitter.

‘I called because’, she slowly said, ‘I’m in the middle of falling in love with Cisco, we now have a child together but I’m not even sure he wants me to be Aurora’s mother.’

Oliver’s jaw kind of dropped in shock, while Felicity didn’t even look mildly surprised.

‘I think I’m going to leave the room, now’, Oliver said slowly, even blushing a little.

‘I think you should go wake William up’, Felicity told him.

After Oliver left, Caitlin asked who William was.

‘Oliver’s son’, Felicity said around a smile.

It was Caitlin’s turn to be shocked.

‘You can ask Barry about it’, Felicity tilted her head. ‘Bottom line, he lost his mom when the island exploded and found out Green Arrow was his father at the same time. It’s… it’s not easy, for any of us, but we’re getting there.’

Caitlin remembered how to breathe. ‘Oh my god, Felicity.’

‘I know’, Felicity threw her a look. ‘But, getting back to your problems. First thing first: do you _want_ to be a mother?’

Caitlin wordlessly nodded, not needing to explain to Felicity how she spent most of the night thinking about it and coming to terms with it.

‘Good’, Felicity smiled. ‘You should tell Cisco that. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that he wants you to raise Aurora together.’

Caitlin could only nod, anxiousness settling into her chest thinking of that conversation.

‘Also’, Felicity went on softly, ‘I’m pretty sure Cisco has been in love with you for a long while now, and while the timing may be wrong, you should tell him how you feel. Even if you don’t go for it now-‘

‘We should at least know’, Caitlin interrupted, ‘if it’s something that may happen in the future.’

‘Exactly’, Felicity smiled. ‘I know it won’t be an easy talk, for you, but… it’s Cisco’, she said his name somewhat reverently. ‘Hurting you is the last thing he wants to do.’

‘I know’, Caitlin smiled.

She heard shuffling coming from Felicity’s side, and the blonde smiling wildly when a young boy came into frame.

He looked so much like Oliver, it kind of took Caitlin’s breath away.

‘Morning, Lis’, he said softly, as Felicity opened up her arms and let William climb into her lap, even if he wasn’t a toddler anymore, clearly.

‘Good morning, buddy.’, Felicity said brightly. ‘Want me to get you your cereal?’

‘Later’, the boy yawned, settling into her hold. Then, he looked at the computer, instantly getting shy but saying a polite ‘Hello, miss.’

‘Will’, Felicity said brightly. ‘This is Caitlin Snow, remember we told you about her?’

The boy nodded, his eyes growing eyes. ‘You’re Frost.’

She didn’t wrinkle her nose at the nickname the media gave her, not anymore. It was better than the alternative.

‘Hi, William, it’s nice to meet you.’

‘You work with the Flash!’, he said in a rush, clearly getting excited. ‘Is he cool? Is he as cool as he seems?’

Felicity was clearly trying not to laugh. ‘See, William here’, she explained, ‘is the biggest Flash fan ever. Much to his father’s despair.’

The boy pouted. ‘Green Arrow is cool, but Flash has superpowers! That’s way cooler.’

Caitlin bit down on her laughter. ‘Well, the Flash is somewhat cool’, she said diplomatically. ‘But being a superhero is hard, you know. Barry had to call Oliver for help a lot of times.’

‘Really?’, William frowned, not looking convinced.

‘Yes. And, can you keep a secret?’

The boy nodded with wide eyes.

‘When Barry got his powers, he didn’t think he’d be a good superhero.’

‘That’s stupid’, William didn’t miss a beat.

‘Not really’, Caitlin said gently. ‘Flash had a lot to learn, and he didn’t think he’d be able to do it, he was scared he was going to fail in saving people. And do you know who the first person he went to for help was?’

‘Who?’, William looked like he was holding his breath.

‘Oliver’, Caitlin smiled. ‘Barry ran to Oliver, who was the one who assured him, that he had it in him, the strength needed to become a superhero, to help people. Really, William, the Flash wouldn’t be what he is today if it wasn’t for your dad, so give him some credit, okay?’

William nodded, slowly, clearly thinking things through.

Over his head, Felicity mouthed ‘thank you’, and then smiled wildly.

‘Well, Caitlin, sorry to cut this short, but we have to get ready for school and I’m sure you have important things to do, too’, Felicity threw her a look.

‘Thank you’, Caitlin said around a smile.

‘Anytime.’, was Felicity’s quick response.

‘Give Oliver a kiss for me, will you, William?’

‘Yes, alright. For you.’, the boy rolled his eyes, making Felicity snicker.

Ending the skype call, Caitlin took a minute to take a deep breath. Then she got dressed.

”•‟

An hour later, she was at Cisco’s door, with a bag filled with coffee and breakfast from his favorite place downtown. She didn’t ring the bell, in fear of waking Aurora up, so she texted him, asking if he was awake.

He called back immediately.

‘Barely’, is what Cisco answered with. ‘I mean, I didn’t sleep last night. I might have passed out a couple of times, I’m not sure. I spent the last hour feeding Aurora and then begging her to fall back asleep, which she just did.’

‘Could you please come and open your door?’

‘What?’, came the confused response.

‘Front door, Cisco’, she tried not to laugh.

She heard shuffling on the other side of the phone, and then she heard shuffling on the other side of the door. Cisco was clearly surprised to see her there.

He looked awful. His hair was a mess, there were multiple weird stains on his sleeping shirt and he was still wearing the jeans he was wearing last night.

‘I brought breakfast’, Caitlin said sweetly.

He just stared at her, clearly confused.

‘May I come in?’, Caitlin insisted.

Cisco wordlessly stepped aside, and he followed Caitlin all the way to his kitchen, where she set the table and reheated the coffee.

‘You can stop staring, now’, Caitlin told him brightly. ‘Sit down and eat.’

‘Uhm’, was all Cisco said.

Caitlin snickered, but she also grabbed his hand and all but dragged him to a chair, going as far as putting a fork and knife in his hands.

‘Okay’, Cisco said, and started shoveling food into his mouth.

”•‟

‘Why are you here?’, he asked gently when the table was cleared and the dishes was washed.

Caitlin sighed, sitting on a chair next to him.

‘I know you said you didn’t want me here-‘

‘I never said that’, Cisco looked alarmed. ‘And I won’t ever say that because that will never be true.’

Caitlin smiled, gathering strength from the certainty he displayed.

‘That’s good because, Cisco, I want to be here. For Aurora.’

He frowned at that. ‘You said that already. Yesterday.’

‘No, I mean, I want to … I want to be Aurora’s mother.’

Cisco took a sharp inhale of breath, staring at her with wide eyes.

‘Caitlin’, he said in a whisper, ‘you don’t have to do that.’

‘I know. But I want to.’                       

He just looked at her for a long while, in shock and clearly searching for something.

‘You really mean that’, Cisco finally said, grabbing a hold of her hand.

Caitlin smiled. ‘It’s not just Aurora, though. Things changed between us, since I came back.’

He tried to pull his hand away, but she didn’t let him.

‘My feelings for you changed’, she went on as strongly as she could. ‘Or maybe they haven’t changed, they just… settled. If it’s just me, then tell me now and I-‘

‘It’s not just you’, Cisco whispered. ‘It’s not.’

She took a shaky breath at that, something finally settling inside her chest.

‘I know this isn’t the right time. But if… if there’s a chance, for us. A maybe, sometime in the future, I’d like to know. Right now.’

Her heart was bared, and Cisco was looking at her with awe, but fear as well. It was exactly what she felt.

But he was silent.

‘Whatever your answer, I still want to be a mother for Aurora. If you’ll let me.’

‘Dios mios’, Cisco breathed out. ‘Of course I’ll let you, what… that’s not a question you need to ask.’

She smiled at that, albeit shakily.

‘And the other question?’

Cisco took a deep breath, and closed his eyes as he brought their still clasped hands to his lips, as he gently kissed Caitlin’s fingers.

‘Not now’, he breathed out. ‘But soon.’

‘Soon’, Caitlin said, imprinting the moment into her heart.

‘Soon’, Cisco smiled at her.

Aurora started crying, and he closed his eyes, hanging his head.

‘I’ve got her’, Caitlin said, unable to stop smiling.

”•‟

Over the next few weeks, things seemed to settle into somewhat of a routine.

Caitlin spent her days in the Cortex, helping Barry and Wally flash through the city, saving the day. Each day, Joe and Iris took turns taking over the comms so that she could leave early.

She’d head to Cisco’s, every day. Some evenings, they’d take turns cooking dinner. Sometimes, they’d get lazy and order in. They’d eat in Cisco’s kitchen, taking turns in feeding Aurora.

Then, they’d take the stroller Barry and Iris gifted them and walk Aurora around the neighborhood for about an hour. That mellowed her down enough for either Caitlin or Cisco to give her a quick bath.

By the time that was over, Aurora was ready to sleep. She still needed Cisco to cuddle her for a while, as Caitlin read her a story, but Aurora usually fell asleep without too much fuss.

After that, they’d hang out on the couch, watching a movie or tv show and some nights, Caitlin stayed long enough to be there when Aurora would wake up the first time.

Cisco always hugged her before she left, and she always said _I’ll see you tomorrow_.

”•‟

One month into this routine, Cisco opened the door to his apartment in a … state.

He was shirtless, there was what looked like banana mush on his shoulder, his hair was held up by a plastic spoon and he was crying.

As was Aurora, Caitlin could hear her in the background.

The first thing Caitlin did was to push Cisco into the apartment and close the door behind her. Then, being only mildly mindful of the food on his skin, she hugged Cisco tightly.

‘Go shower’, she kissed his cheek. ‘Or take a long bath. I’m in charge of Aurora tonight, okay?’

‘I can do this.’, Cisco insisted, stubbornly, even if his voice was shaking and even if his fingers were holding onto Caitlin’s jacket very tightly.

‘I know you can’, she said as gently as she could. ‘But you don’t have to. You’ve been doing all the heavy lifting, Cisco, you deserve a break.’

Slowly, his resolution settled, Cisco releasing a deep sigh and his shoulder slumping. He nodded once, let go of Caitlin, wiped his face and wordlessly headed to the bathroom.

Caitlin didn’t waste any time, she went to the bedroom, where Aurora’s crib was, and she picked the baby up. She changed her and fed her and only after that did Aurora calm down.

Cisco was still in the bathroom, probably had fallen asleep in the bath, so Caitlin left him a note and took Aurora out for a walk. She stayed out longer than usual, and Aurora fell asleep just as they were getting in the elevator in Cisco’s building.

Once in the apartment, Caitlin was quick to put Aurora in her crib, surprised to see that Cisco wasn’t in his bed.

He was on the couch, fast asleep. Shirtless, still holding on to the shirt he was planning on wearing. He was drooling, a little.

It didn’t deter her heart from doing a flip flop.

Cisco looked so sweet. Relaxed and carefree, snuggled up against the back of the couch, one leg close to falling off.

He had to take better care of himself. Caitlin had to make him take better care of himself.

She made a mistake, in letting Aurora stay only with Cisco. She said they were going to do this together, and that didn’t mean just helping hm out in the evenings and on weekends.

So Caitlin grabbed one of the laptops Cisco had laying around and set camp at the kitchen table. She ordered a crib and a car seat, formula and bottles, pacifiers, a plastic tub for bath time, and everything else Cisco already had. Except for the stroller, there was no reason to have two of those.

She felt… incredibly accomplished, pushing that _finish order_ buttons. She felt excited, alarmingly so, at the thought of having Aurora with her over night. Caitlin also felt scared, but that was to be expected. By now, she knew perfectly well how to function when she felt scared.

When doubt settled into Caitlin’s chest, she looked to Cisco, who was still peacefully asleep on the couch. All doubt disappeared, instantly.

She could do this, with Cisco by her side. She could totally do this.

Caitlin did keep her wits enough to e-mail Barry, though. His answer was immediate, of course he was alright with Caitlin and Cisco taking turns in the Cortex, and Barry informed her that everyone else thought it was a great idea.

With that settled, she shut the laptop, covered Cisco with a blanket and settled on an armchair, intent to wait for him to wake up.

It didn’t take long, maybe an hour. Cisco woke up with a snort, saying _pineapple_ for some reason. He righted himself on the couch, frowning as he was rubbing at his eyes, wiggling his toes on the floor.

‘Good morning, sleepyhead’, Caitlin said sweetly.

He startled, looking surprised at her.

‘Did you forget I was still here?’, she couldn’t help but snicker.

Cisco nodded. ‘Aurora?’

‘She’s still asleep’, she smiled at him. ‘And I… have been planning.’

Caitlin couldn’t keep the excitement out of her tone, as she told Cisco that from now on, they will be taking turns. On the week Aurora stayed with Caitlin, Cisco will be in the Cortex, and vice versa.

It was a perfect plan, she thought, but Cisco didn’t seem to think so, because he was staring at her with wide eyes.

‘Do you not think it’s going to work?’, Caitlin hesitated, clearly.

‘Caitlin’, Cisco breathed out in a whisper.

Then, he chuckled, running a hand over his face.

‘I want to tell you to slow down’, he was smiling at her. ‘I want to tell you that I was the one who made a promise to Vibe, I want to tell you that you don’t have to do this.’

‘But?’, Caitlin insisted when he didn’t go on.

‘But’, his smile grew. ‘I can see it in your eyes. You want this.’

‘I do’, she nodded, thinking of what she told Felicity and Oliver, that she saw it in Cisco’s eyes, how he wanted Aurora to be his.

He laughed, a gentle sound, as he got up from the couch and made his way to the armchair Caitlin was still sitting in, lowering himself to her level, his hands on her knees to steady him.

‘We’re doing this’, Cisco was still smiling.

Caitlin put her hands over his.

‘We’re going to raise a child together’, he went on, awe slipping through. ‘We’re going to be Aurora’s parents, she’s going to call us _mom_ and _dad_ and we’re going to have to ground her and give her the sex talk and-‘

‘You’re getting ahead of yourself’, Caitlin laughed. ‘But yes.’

She rolled her eyes. ‘Wally’s been calling us Mommy Cait and Daddy Cisco.’

He laughed at that too, a beautiful sight.

‘I’m kinda digging it.’, he admitted.

Caitlin couldn’t stop herself, she let go of Cisco’s hands in order to gently grab his head, bringing it forward until she could kiss his forehead.

He sighed, deeply. ‘It’s not gonna be easy.’

‘I know’, she nodded, ‘but we can do it.’

Caitlin truly believed it, and by the looks of things, Cisco did too.

”•‟

Adjusting to having a baby in the house came surprisingly easy for Caitlin. It took nothing at all.

”•‟

A week later, Joe told them he had a friend who worked in child services, who was willing to fake a birth certificate for Aurora.

Caitlin only hesitated for half a second. Cisco for a bit longer, but in the end, they got an official piece of paper that declared Aurora to be their child.

If Caitlin shed a happy tear over it, only Cisco was there to see it.

”•‟

Four months after Aurora came, Caitlin and Cisco were on her couch, late on a Saturday night.

‘Hey, so’, he started with a little hesitance, ‘Real talk. I’ve been looking for a place.’

She couldn’t hide her surprise.

‘I mean, my apartment is a certified bachelor pad, it’s not the best place to raise a child, is it? And she’s already crawling, it won’t be long until she starts walking and, I mean, she should have her own room and-‘

Caitlin stopped his babble by putting a hand on his shoulder.

He took a deep breath and then, finally, looked at her.

‘I found a house. It’s nice, really nice. But I want you to see it before I buy it.’

Caitlin blinked, and Cisco blushed, looking away.

‘I mean, you might end up living there too, at some point. And even if you don’t’, he laughed, embarrassed, ‘you’re a far better adult than I am, I need your opinion.’

It was the first time they ever mentioned a future together, after that first discussion. It made Caitlin blush, sure, but it also made her feel excited.

And she felt so much love for Cisco in that moment, and she felt proud, that not only had he thought about it, but that he had gathered enough courage to tell her about it.

So Caitlin kissed his cheek and asked when they could go and see the place.

”•‟

They left Aurora in the Cortex with Barry and the West’s, and drove to the neighborhood Joe’s house was in. The house Cisco stopped in front of was a few streets away.

There was a couple living in it, an old lady who kissed Cisco’s cheeks and an old man who kindly called Caitlin _lady_. But they stayed in the living room as Cisco showed her around the house.

It was surprisingly large. It had a back yard filled with flowers and a swing set, a patio with a small table and two rocking chairs, a large living room and a massive dining table at the ground floor, and four rooms at the next level. A bedroom, a guest room, a room Cisco planned to turn into a nursery and an office, with a window nook and a large bookcase.

‘Can you afford this place?’, Caitlin asked, in awe.

‘I can afford like… half of it.’, Cisco snorted. ‘Gonna get a loan for the rest. They gave me a discount, if I buy it now and let them stay for two more months, until they get their new place and what not.’

Caitlin quickly did some math in her head, wordlessly pulled her phone and checked her account. She hesitated only for a little bit before showing it to Cisco.

‘You don’t have to get a loan’, she finally said. ‘I can pay for the other half.’

Understandably, Cisco’s jaw dropped.

‘You…’, he tried. ‘You don’t have to, I mean, this… Caitlin. This isn’t…’

He was baffled.

‘Cisco’, she took a deep breath. ‘Real talk. I want this life. With you. A house, with you and Aurora. And it scares me, I’m terrified.’

‘Same’, he whispered, getting a smile out of her.

‘You know me, you know I’ve always… hesitated, before important decisions about my life.’

‘Then why aren’t you hesitating now? Caitlin, this is… what if we don’t work out? You’ll be left with …’, he shook his head, stepping closer to her.

‘As much as I want it, and as much as you want it, as much as we both know we’ll try to make it work for Aurora, we don’t know it will.’

‘We don’t know anything’, Caitlin smiled, despite herself. ‘You’re Vibe, I’m Frost, we spend our days helping the Flash and Kid Flash catch bad guys. We have the Green Arrow on speed dial, we have friends who spend their time navigating through time and space. Nothing is sure, for us.’

‘Not even this’, Cisco grabbed a hold of her hand.

‘Not even this’, she agreed. ‘But we love Aurora. And we love each other, one way or another, and quite frankly’, her eyes grew wide, ‘Cisco, we deserve this. We’ve been through so much, and I’m sure the craziness isn’t stopping anytime soon.’

He snorted, but she went on.

‘We deserve this. A nice house with a porch and a garden. Aurora drawing on the walls no matter how much we tell her not to. Baking cookies in the kitchen for Christmas, cuddling on the couch with a fire in the fireplace. We deserve to be happy, Cisco. Just a little spot of happiness in the middle of all the crazy.’

‘I really want to kiss you right now’, Cisco said in a rush, gently rubbing some tears off her face.

‘But I won’t’, he smiled. ‘Not yet.’

Caitlin didn’t feel bad about it. Because there was love in Cisco’s eyes, and excitement.

So Caitlin hugged him tightly, and he returned it immediately. They were both laughing, and she was happily crying.

”•‟

Aurora stayed with Caitlin the next week, but she got sick.

Caitlin panicked, of course, but she also kept her head. So she called her mother.

‘It’s just a fever’, she told Caitlin for the billionth time. ‘You just need to take care of her and keep giving her medicine. She’ll be fine.’

‘I should take her to the hospital’, Caitlin insisted.

‘Not yet, they’ll just tell you what I did. If the fever doesn’t go down by tomorrow, then take her to the hospital.’

Caitlin wasn’t convinced, but she listened to her mother. And every time Aurora woke up crying, she held her close, cleaned her up and changed her clothes, fed her and held her some more, long after the baby fell asleep.

Cisco let himself in on the second night, at 3AM.

It was okay, though, because Caitlin was sitting on the ground, her back to the couch, Aurora asleep in her arms.

‘I just wanted to see her’, Cisco whispered.

Caitlin could only nod, she was too exhausted to do anything else.

Cisco sat down on the floor next to her, pushing their shoulders together. He gently took Aurora from Caitlin’s hands, cradling her in his.

Caitlin knew she should get up. She should have a shower, change out of the clothes she has been wearing for two days straight, maybe eat something. Instead, she just closed her eyes and laid her head on Cisco’s shoulder.

He hummed. ‘Has her fever gone down?’

‘A bit’, Caitlin nodded. ‘It’ll probably keep going down, but it’ll take a while.’

Again, he hummed.

They stayed like that for a while, in silence, in the dark. Cisco did, eventually, get up, going to the bedroom and putting Aurora in her crib. He came back and told Caitlin to take a shower.

She did take a long, hot shower, changing into her favorite pajamas afterwards. Cisco was waiting in the living room, on the ground in front of the couch, but holding plates with grilled cheese sandwiches and cups of tea.

They ate in silence, and even though Caitlin was exhausted, she was too hyped up to sleep, too worried about Aurora.

It was incredible, how much she loved Aurora. Caitlin didn’t give birth to her, the baby didn’t grow inside of her, she didn’t sleep with her father, but it didn’t matter.

Caitlin has never loved someone more than she loved Aurora. And it felt like the best feeling in the world.

Cisco moved, slightly, startling her out of her thoughts. There were fingers on her jaw, tilting her head up, and when Caitlin opened her eyes, all she could see was him.

Cisco, blinking slowly at her, lips slightly open. His eyes shining, filled with love. So much love.

As much love as she felt.

Slowly, Cisco wrapped an arm around Caitlin’s shoulders, bringing her closer to him, still. She threw both her legs over his lap and he smiled because of it, the fingers of his other hand gently touching her face, again, slowly caressing her cheek.

She said his name, whispered it really, and he took it as an answer to a question he didn’t ask.

Cisco moved his fingers, from her cheek to her neck, tilting her head that little distance needed, so that he could press their lips together.

She has been waiting for it for weeks.

She has wanted it for months.

Cisco pulled back, quickly, breathing heavily and looking at her with wide eyes.

‘Oh my god’.

She didn’t hear him say the words, but she saw his lips moving and she felt the air shifting around them.

Caitlin kissed him, properly this time, grabbing a hold of his shirt and holding on for dear life. It didn’t last very long, and it wasn’t spectacular, but it was important. And it was good. It was the start of something that could be amazing.

So Caitlin smiled wildly when they stopped for breath, and when exhaustion finally took over her, Cisco was still there, holding her tightly, kissing her gently.

”•‟

Not a lot changed, after that first kiss.

Sure, there were more kisses, all innocent and sweet, and there was a lot more cuddling on the couch, but that was it.

It was a good thing, Caitlin thought. That getting together didn’t make things awkward for them. Sure, they haven’t actually gone on a date, yet, but Caitlin felt more confident about their relationship, now. Now that they were together.

The butterflies Caitlin felt in her stomach every time Cisco kissed her probably helped. The fact that he actually started addressing her as Aurora’s mother helped as well.

”•‟

Caitlin’s mother came to visit the next week she had Aurora.

To everyone’s surprise, Carla completely melted at the sight of the baby. The icy exterior evaporated instantly, the older woman smiling wildly at Aurora, holding her every chance she could get away with it, calling her _my_ _grandbaby_ and overall spoiling her.

It made Caitlin incredibly happy, happy beyond words.

Cisco came over one evening, unannounced, clearly prepared to cook dinner for ‘his favorite ladies, don’t tell Iris’.

He also brought a bouquet of sunflowers, which he easily found a vase for and put in the middle of the kitchen table.

Carla, who was sitting at the table with Aurora in her arms, raised an eyebrow at it, throwing Caitlin a pointed look.

She smiled. ‘Cisco. You got me flowers?’

‘Of course not’, he frowned. ‘I got Aurora flowers, d’uh.’

He kept up with it for a couple of beats. Cisco then chuckled, and quickly kissed Caitlin, a chaste and sweet one, sweet as always.

But as he pulled away, he froze, blushing and eyes quickly skipping to Caitlin’s mother.

‘I probably shouldn’t have done that.’

‘Why shouldn’t you have done that?’, Carla asked pointedly.

Caitlin hadn’t really got the chance to tell her mother about the development in her and Cisco’s relationship, but it was clear that the older woman wasn’t surprised.

‘It’s still new’, Caitlin told her. ‘And with us taking turns, between watching Aurora and going to the lab, we haven’t told the team yet.’

‘Why not?’, Carla frowned.

‘We haven’t managed to get all of us in the same place at the same time’, Cisco said, shaking his head before turning around and starting dinner.

Carla didn’t say anything, but as Cisco turned his back on her, she smirked at him, before turning to look at Caitlin. Her smirk fell off, quickly replaced with a loving smile, paired with Carla wrapping her hands around Aurora just that tiny bit harder.

‘We bought a house’, Caitlin smiled, grinning when her mother’s jaw dropped.

She recovered quickly. ‘That’s good. I mean, your lease is up anyway, right?’

Cisco head snapped to Caitlin. ‘You didn’t tell me that.’

Caitlin glared at her mother, for a spare second, before looking back at Cisco. She couldn’t help her hesitation.

‘I move in the house in six weeks’, Cisco said softly. ‘When does your lease end?’

‘Three months.’

‘Okay, so’, Cisco went back to chopping vegetables. ‘Do you wanna move in then? Or earlier, with me, or… just not do that?’

Caitlin stared at him with wide eyes, even if Cisco wasn’t looking at her.

Carla cleared her throat, but when Caitlin still didn’t say anything, the older woman sighed.

‘Should I leave you two kids alone?’

Cisco snorted. ‘No need, Grandma T. Families are supposed to wash their dirty awkward laundry together, right?’

‘Families are, yes’, Carla said slowly, turning to look at Caitlin.

She sighed. ‘We’ve only been together for two weeks, Cisco. We have a baby, sure, but it’s… you want me to move in with you after three months of dating?’

‘I want you to do whatever you want to do’, Cisco said easily. ‘But, I would just like to point out that we’ve known each other for 7 years now. We’ve been best friends for almost as long, and we’ve seen each other at our lowest.’

He threw her a look. ‘Repeatedly.’

Caitlin sighed, again.

‘I’m just saying’, Cisco said a bit softer. ‘It won’t be too weird. Just think about it.’

‘I will’, Caitlin promised, just as Aurora started fussing.

She needed a diaper change and Carla was more than happy to go deal with it, so Caitlin asked Cisco if she could help him with dinner.

He put down the knife he was wielding, wiped his hands on a towel, and he grinned as he turned around to face her.

Caitlin barely had the time to take a breath before Cisco all but pounced on her. He wrapped a strong arm around her waist and pulled her, somewhat forcefully, to him, and used his free hand to tilt her head where he wanted it.

This kiss wasn’t sweet, like the one they shared a few minutes ago or any of their kisses in the last weeks. Cisco was holding tightly onto Caitlin, as he kissed her strongly and fast, biting on her lips and pulling, slightly, at her hair.

She was absolutely breathless and more than a little surprised when Cisco pulled away. He was grinning.

‘You can help me by pouring us some wine’.

He went back to cooking dinner, completely ignoring the way Caitlin had to take a minute for her breathing to return back to normal.

”•‟

‘I like Cisco’, Carla said before leaving town. ‘He loves you and he’s good with Aurora.’

‘So you approve?’, Caitlin was surprised, to say the least.

‘You don’t need my approval’, the older woman rolled her eyes. ‘But you’re happy, of course I approve.’

‘So you’re saying I should move in with him’, Caitlin frowned.

‘Sweetheart, I’m saying do whatever will keep you being happy.’

Caitlin didn’t rush into it, she still had a few months to decide. So she didn’t move into the house when Cisco did, and thankfully, he didn’t pressure her.

”•‟

A month later, the Flash was caught up in an all hands on deck situation, he needed both Vibe and Frost by his side, as well as Kid Flash and the Police.

It was the first time they all went out to fight together, the first time in a long time they were actually all together. Caitlin felt empowered by it.

Iris stayed back with Aurora at the lab, and while both Caitlin and Cisco were clearly worried, it didn’t stop Frost and Vibe from kicking ass and helping the Flashes save the day.

Once they got back to the Cortex, Caitlin and Cisco wasted no time in crowding Aurora. The baby screeched happily when he picked her up, and, as usual, tugged at Caitlin’s hair as soon as it was within reach. Aurora didn’t seem to mind that they were still in their suits, that Cisco still had his goggles and gauntlets on or that Caitlin’s hair wasn’t the color she was used to.

‘Gosh, you’re so cute’, Barry said sweetly, stepping closer but not making any move to hold Aurora. ‘When will Iris and I get to babysit her again? We had so much fun last time.’

Cisco didn’t hesitate. ‘How about Saturday?’

‘Yes’, Barry punched the air, already making his way to Iris’ side to inform her.

Caitlin frowned at Cisco. ‘Do we have plans on Saturday?’

‘Yup.’

‘What plans?’, she insisted, because it was the first time she heard of this.

‘Not sure yet’, Cisco tickled Aurora, ‘but I’ll figure something out. Anything particular you wanna do on a first, proper date?’

Caitlin didn’t freeze in shock, she didn’t look at him like he was crazy. She just smiled and gave him a quick kiss.

‘Anything is fine by me’, she was still smiling.

Cisco grinned, before his eyes skipped to the side.

‘Oops’, was all he said, sounding anything but sorry. When Caitlin turned around, she understood why.

The team was staring at them, with various expressions.

‘That’s new’, Wally said, slowly, mildly confused.

‘That’s great!’, Iris said with excitement.

‘That’s about time’, Joe chuckled.

‘That’s a weird relationship timeline you’ve got there’, Barry deadpanned, amusement seeping through in his eyes.

‘Bah bah bah!’, Aurora all but screeched, clearly happy about something.

It made all responses die on Caitlin and Cisco’s lips, so they shared another kiss, and gave Aurora to Wally to hold as they changed out of their suits.

”•‟

Even if Caitlin wanted this from the bottom of her heart, that didn’t mean that she wasn’t anxious about it. Excited, sure, but still anxious.

Since Killer Frost, she knew it was better to not hold her emotions in. So early on a Saturday evening, she called Felicity.

She was in the lair, clearly, on her computers. She answered the skype call, but didn’t stop typing.

‘Sorry, Caitlin, I’m in the middle of a situation. Time sensitive problem, you see.’

‘I’ll call later.’

‘No, no, just wait a minute.’

Caitlin did wait, looking at Felicity typing away at her keypads. She yelped when she was done, clearly pleased with what she accomplished. She tapped her ear comm.

‘Overwatch is a hacking goddess and don’t you forget it. You guys are free to go in, good luck and all that, now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got an undisclosed Team Flash member on line two that seems in desperate need of girly talk.’

‘Felicity!’, Caitlin groaned, as the other woman snickered and touched her ear piece again.

‘Sorry’, she seemed anything but. ‘But you do actually look like you need a good mani-pedi and a crate of wine.’

Caitlin took a deep breath. ‘I have a date with Cisco tonight.’

That stopped Felicity’s snickers.

‘We’ve been dating for about two months, but this is our first real, actual date.’

‘And where is he taking you?’, Felicity asked around a smile.

‘I don’t know’, Caitlin shrugged. ‘He said there’s going to be food involved, but that I should wear comfy clothes, don’t bother too much with getting fancy.’

Felicity eyed her. ‘The sparkly top might be a bit too much, then.’

Caitlin whined, already heading to her closet. ‘I knew there was a reason why I called you.’

She held up a sweater.

‘Too yellow’, Felicity easily piped up.

Caitlin held up a blouse.

‘Too conservative.’

Another sweater.

‘Better’, Felicity tilted her head, ‘but you could go hotter.’

Caitlin rolled her eyes. ‘You do remember Cisco has known me for years, right? That’s he’s seen me super dolled up for a fancy gala and in week old pajamas after Ronnie died?’

‘Sure’, Felicity snorted, ‘but this time, you’re actually dressing up for _him_.’

She had a point, kind of, so Caitlin pulled out another sweater from her closet, that she maybe wore once before. It was longer than the rest, but tighter and with a generous cleavage, without being too much. It was a dark pink color and Caitlin had a matching lipstick in her collection.

‘That’, Felicity grinned. ‘That’s the one.’

Caitlin nodded, put the phone on her vanity and quickly changed.

‘Better?’, Felicity smirked.

‘Little bit’, Caitlin admitted. ‘I’m still way too excited and way too anxious and scared of telling him that I want to move in next month and-‘

‘Hold on’, Felicity yelped. ‘Back up. Move in?’

Caitlin took a deep breath and explained the situation, told Felicity about the house they bought and the fact that the lease for her apartment was ending in a couple of weeks, and that she made no move to extend it or to look another place.

‘That’s good’, Felicity finally said. ‘It’s a good thing, Caitlin. Kind of normal, don’t you think?’

‘Not really’, Caitlin winced. ‘When we told the team, Barry said that we have a weird relationship timeline.’

‘Well, yeah’, Felicity chuckled. ‘But, I mean… Look around you. We all have weird lives and weird relationships. Oliver and I, Barry and Iris. It’s not easy, but we make it work.’

‘And, come on’, she threw Caitlin a look. ‘You can’t tell me that you don’t want to be with Aurora every day.’

Caitlin couldn’t help but smile.

‘How is Aurora, by the way?’, Felicity smiled widely.

‘She’s growing so fast’, Caitlin breathed out. ‘She’s a year old and so close to walking. Really close.’

‘Awwwh’, Felicity cooed. ‘I can’t wait to meet her, the pictures aren’t enough.’

Caitlin smiled brightly at that. ‘You should come and visit soon, I haven’t seen you in a while.’

‘I might just’, Felicity nodded. ‘Now. Take a deep breath, put on some lipstick and go knock the socks off Cisco. Or, well, let him knock the socks off you.’

Caitlin snorted.

‘Caitlin’, Felicity said softly. ‘You’re good. And he’s good, and you can now be good together.’

‘Thank you’, she answered just as softly.

‘No problem’, Felicity said, just as indistinct chatter came from her side. ‘My team is back and they’re bickering’, she rolled her eyes. ‘Talk to you later? No, not later, you’ll be busy later. Tomorrow.’

Caitlin laughed as she was saying her goodbyes.

”•‟

Cisco was waiting for her in front of a pickup truck. It was light blue, older than her and truly awful.

‘It was Dante’s’, the grin didn’t fall off his face. ‘Dad let me borrow it.’

‘Is there a reason why you needed a truck for our date?’, Caitlin couldn’t hide her confusion.

‘Of course there is’, Cisco threw her a look, before grinning again. ‘I’m not telling you yet, though, that’ll ruin the surprise.’

She was standing in front of him by this point, and Caitlin couldn’t stop smiling.

Cisco said a very soft ‘Hi’, red appearing on his cheeks. Caitlin grabbed his hand.

‘Aurora’s safely tucked away with Iris and Barry’, he said gently. ‘Barry made a pillow fort and Iris actually wrote down a list of Disney movies they could watch.’

He was going to say more, but Caitlin cut him off with a kiss. He was quick to get on with the program, humming against her lips and putting his free hand around her waist.

Cisco stopped the kiss pretty quickly, though, still refusing to tell Caitlin where they were going, but arguing that they were going to be late.

”•‟

They went to a drive-in theater, on the outer edge of Central City. There was a sci-fi marathon happening, which wasn’t exactly Caitlin’s favorite, but Cisco argued that she hasn’t seen any of the movies and that they were iconic ones.

So Caitlin accepted Cisco’s help in climbing in the back of the truck, smiled when she saw that he had a lot of pillows and blankets stashed there, so they will be comfortable. She didn’t argue when Cisco went and bought a whole lot of junk food, and she easily snuggled up to Cisco’s side when he finally settled down.

She watched the movies, but she watched him more. Cisco always got excited about his favorite movies, and it didn’t bother Caitlin, when he’d turn around and whisper things in her ear, bits of trivia and pointing out small details in the films.

But now, every time he made her laugh, she kissed him instead.

”•‟

Caitlin lasted through the first movies, but when the credits for the third one started rolling in, so did her yawns.

Cisco kissed her temple and easily said he’ll take her home.

‘But you wanted to see the movies’, she argued, even as she helped him pack everything away.

‘It’s fine, we’ll see them another time’, Cisco grinned.

She had to kiss him at that, and he chuckled against her lips.

The drive to her apartment was silent, but it was clear that Cisco was building up the courage to say something. As was Caitlin, really, so she all but ordered him to park the truck and come up for a cup of coffee.

Of course, Cisco obliged.

 ‘Hey, real talk’, Cisco finally said, after they both had coffee in their hands and Caitlin was sitting at the table, like a normal person, and he was sitting on it, like the ridiculous child that he was.

‘Tomorrow, when I take the truck back to my parents, I wanna…’, he sighed, looking away from her. ‘I need to tell them.’

Caitlin blinked. ‘Tell them what?’

‘Everything’, he breathed out. ‘About Barry, about Vibe, about Aurora. Everything.’

‘That’s big’, Caitlin said softly.

She knew that the relationship between Cisco and his parents had gotten better since Dante died, but it was a hard thing to do, mend all those years of resentment.

‘I already talked to Barry and Wally’, Cisco said in a rush, ‘they’re okay with it, but, I mean, it’s your story too, your secret and-‘

She cut him off by grabbing a hold of his hand.

‘You should take Aurora with you.’

‘Should I?’, he was very anxious.

‘Yes, have you seen how my mother reacted to her? Aurora will mellow your parents down, help with their shock.’

‘Okay’, Cisco smiled fondly.

‘I can come with you too, if you want.’

His eyes snapped to hers instantly. ‘You’d do that?’

‘Of course I would’, Caitlin frowned, tightening her hold on his fingers. ‘Family washes their dirty laundry together, right?’

‘Family’, he said slowly, still looking confused and overwhelmed.

Caitlin sighed. ‘When will you understand that I’d do anything for you?’

Cisco’s breath hitched, understandably. She took a shaky breath of her own and put their coffee away, standing up and forcing Cisco to spread his legs, so that she could stand between them.

She kissed him first, slowly and as kindly as she could, steadying herself with her hands on his knees.

‘Real talk’, Caitlin said when she stopped the kiss. ‘I want to move in with you at the end of the month.’

‘Caitlin’, he said breathlessly, staring at her with wide eyes.

‘It’s selfish, really’, she shrugged. ‘I want to come home every night to my daughter and I want to wake up every morning next to my boyfriend.’

‘I left half of the dressing empty’, he said quickly. ‘And more than half of the bathroom cabinet and the kitchen and-‘

Caitlin, once again, shut him up by kissing him. But this time, it wasn’t as innocent, with her hands on his face and his wrapped around her waist. She didn’t stop this kiss from growing deeper, and Cisco didn’t either.

He pulled her body closer still, wrapping his legs around her waist. It made Caitlin laugh, a little, but Cisco stopped her quickly enough, by moving his kisses down her jaw and neck, and by, somewhat gently, grabbing her ass.

When Caitlin moaned, because of that, she stopped the kiss and pushed herself a few steps back.

Cisco let her, of course he did. He looked away from her, clearly embarrassed and blushing. He also apologized.

Caitlin took a few shaky breaths, running a hand down her face and her neck. She was sure her skin was bright red, and her legs were feeling a little unsteady, at the moment.

But she embraced the feeling.

‘You should call Barry’, Caitlin said slowly. ‘Check if he and Iris are up for keeping Aurora overnight.’

‘Are you sure?’, Cisco wasn’t blushing anymore, and his eyes flashed with something… very strong, that made Caitlin’s legs feel even more unsteady.

She nodded once, wet her lips, and told him she’ll wait in the bedroom.

”•‟

Caitlin knew that Cisco will be hesitating, by the time he’d end the call and come to her bedroom.

And he was hesitating, just by the open door. But he had taken off his shoes and his jacket, and he was blinking slowly at her legs.

Because by the time Cisco came in, Caitlin only managed to take off her makeup and her jeans. Her legs were bare, the sweater she wore barely covering her upper thighs.

‘Aurora’s asleep’, he said slowly, still blinking at her legs. ‘Barry was more than happy not to wake her.’

Caitlin hummed, taking her time to let her hair out of the messy bun she had it in. The movement made Cisco’s eyes move to her face, but he was still staring, blinking slowly.

‘Nervous?’, she asked as sweetly as she could.

‘Yeah’, Cisco gulped, finally meeting her eyes.

‘Me too’, Caitlin admitted, smiling at him. ‘I’m still excited, though.’

He gulped again, eyes moving back to her legs. ‘That’s a word, yeah.’

Caitlin snorted, but she also made her way towards him. Cisco took a small step back, but that was it. And when she wrapped her arms around his neck, Cisco didn’t hesitate in wrapping his around her waist, bringing their bodies close together.

While the kiss started off pretty sweetly, it didn’t stay like that for long. Cisco grabbed her ass, again, and her whispered moan urged him to sneak his hands underneath her sweater. She shivered when his skin touched hers, so she had to retaliate, by pushing her hands underneath his shirt, moving across his back.

He yelped when she scratched him, even if she did it lightly. They had to stop kissing for a while there, too busy snickering. But they also took this time to get rid of most of their clothes.

The next thing Caitlin was fully aware of was Cisco’s head between her legs and his hands digging bruises onto her hips.

She lost track of things again after that. But she never lost track of Cisco.

”•‟

Caitlin woke up with Cisco’s hair in her face and with a mildly sore back.

It felt amazing.

”•‟

They walked to the front door of the Ramon house holding hands, with Aurora on Cisco’s hip. Needless to say, his parents were very confused. Still, they were invited in and served tea and biscuits in the living room.

Aurora was in a playful mood, so Cisco migrated to the floor, playing with her while still talking to his parents.

Well, talked _at_ his parents. Cisco calmly explained everything he needed to, from Barry and fake Wells, the particle accelerator and getting his powers, to, finally, Caitlin and Aurora. He called her ‘my daughter’ and he called Caitlin ‘my girlfriend’ without a pause, all the while making Aurora giggle and laugh.

His mother stormed off. She yelled at Cisco in Spanish, Caitlin understood what _idiota_ and _me lastimas_ meant. Then she turned around, completely ignoring the way her yelling made Aurora start crying, and slammed the back door in her wake.

Cisco looked like he was about to start crying, even as he was trying to stop Aurora from crying.

Caitlin looked at Cisco’s father for a while, gauging his reaction. It was very different from his wife’s, considering he was looking in awe, at Cisco and Aurora both.

So Caitlin made an executive decision and took Aurora away from Cisco’s hold. She squeezed his shoulder, long enough for him to put his hand over hers and return the gesture.

Then Caitlin followed Cisco’s mother, to the back porch that led to the garden. The woman was leaning against the railing, crying silently.

Caitlin ignored her, for now, focusing her attention on her daughter. But Aurora was fine, she stopped crying the second they got outside. Now, the child was babbling along excitedly, pointing to all the pots of flowers Mrs. Ramon had put on her porch and hung to the railing.

Still holding her on her hip, Caitlin brought Aurora closer to railing. Of course, the first thing she did was try to grab a hold of one of the flowers.

‘You can’t do that, Aurora’, Caitlin took a step back, prying the baby’s hands away from the flowers. ‘Your grandmother will get angry if you ruin her flowers.’

The older woman made a sound then, a confused one. So Caitlin took a deep breath and turned to look at her.

Mrs. Ramon’s eyes didn’t look away from Aurora.

‘She _is_ your granddaughter, you know’, Caitlin said.

‘No’, the older woman said. ‘She’s from another Earth.’

‘Doesn’t matter’, Caitlin shook her head. ‘Yes, Cisco and I weren’t the ones having sex.’

The older woman flinched, a little. Caitlin went on.

‘But I’m a scientist, Mrs. Ramon. And trust me when I tell you that I’ve checked, and double checked and triple checked. Aurora has half of my DNA and half of Cisco’s. That means she has a quarter of yours.’

Mrs. Ramon kept shaking her head.

‘You don’t believe that, all right’, Caitlin sighed. ‘Then look at her. She has Cisco’s eyes.’

It took a few moments, but the older woman relaxed, a little.

‘Cisco is going to get himself killed’, she finally rasped out. ‘What is he thinking? Putting himself in danger like that, thinking he’s what? A superhero?’

It was said incredulous, unbelieving. It made Caitlin’s blood boil, just a little. She put Aurora on the ground, letting her crawl on the porch. The baby didn’t seem put off by this, quite the contrary.

Still keeping an eye on her daughter, Caitlin addressed Mrs. Ramon. She tried to keep her tone calm, but wasn’t succeeding very well.

‘Cisco saved my life more times than I can count, in more ways than one way. Same goes for Barry, The Flash wouldn’t be what he is today if it wasn’t for Cisco.’

She smiled then. ‘And Cisco… Vibe might just be the most powerful metahuman we know of. It’s not that he’s a superhero because he saves lives, because he and our team saved the world. Repeatedly. It’s not that, Mrs. Ramon.’

Caitlin took a deep breath and looked at the older woman.

‘It’s the fact that Cisco could have been the very most evil thing this world has ever seen… but he chose to save it instead. It’s the fact that when he got the message from his Earth 57 doppelganger, he didn’t hesitate. Not for a second. He went there, he saved Aurora, he came back home and _instantly_ became her father. ‘

Caitlin had to take a break and take several deep breaths.

‘That’s the type of man your son is, Mrs. Ramon. And despite all of it, despite of the years you mistreat him and didn’t try to understand him… he still wants to try to make it better.’

‘I can’t do it overnight’, Mrs. Ramon said after a long while.

‘We know that’, Caitlin nodded. ‘It’s understandable. But you owe it to Cisco and to yourself, to try.’

Aurora crawled to them, then. She grabbed at Caitlin’s pants, clearly trying to lift herself up. Caitlin helped her, and Aurora babbled happily up at her mother.

‘And for her, too’, Mrs. Ramon whispered, a small smile on her face.

Caitlin returned it, grabbing her hand and putting Aurora’s in it.

‘I’ll go get Cisco’, she said, and the older woman nodded shakily.

In the living room, Cisco and his father were just detaching themselves from a hug, both of them with tears in their eyes.

‘Where’s Aurora?’, Cisco asked.

‘Your mother is showing her the roses’, Caitlin smiled. ‘You should join them.’

He frowned. ‘What are you going to do?’

Caitlin grinned, taking off her heels and putting them neatly on the floor, out of the way.

‘I am going to drink some tea and eat some biscuits and rest.'

‘I told you you didn’t need to wear heels.’, he told her rather pointedly, before taking a deep breath and heading outside.

Caitlin made herself comfortable on the couch, going as far as putting her feet on the coffee table. Mr. Ramon pursed his lips at that, but he also grabbed a pillow and gently shoved it under her feet. Then he sat down next to her on the couch and turned the tv on.

When Cisco came back in, with Aurora on his shoulders and his mother reprimanding him for it, it wasn’t perfect. It wasn’t even near to that, but it was something, and it was mending.

”•‟

Caitlin moved into the house on a warm Saturday.

Barry, Wally and Cisco did most of the heavy lifting, meaning they took Caitlin’s furniture and boxes through the breach Cisco opened.

By the end of the day, her couch was in the office, her books were on the bookshelves, her clothes were next to Cisco’s in the dressing, her haircurler was next to his electric toothbrush, her fancy coffee maker was next to his upgraded toaster.

After Aurora was peacefully asleep in her room, all Caitlin was able to do was change in her pajamas and collapse on the bed. She was surprised to feel very soft sheets against her cheek, and she appreciate Cisco doing this for her, but all she was able to do was hum.

Cisco threw himself into bed next to her, groaning. He wrapped an arm around her waist and Caitlin was able to push herself closer to him, but that was it.

‘We’re supposed to be having sex’, he grumbled against her shoulder. ‘Celebratory we-just-moved-together sex.’

‘Tomorrow’, Caitlin yawned. ‘Sleep now.’

‘Sleep’, Cisco agreed, yawning himself.

It was the best sleep Caitlin got in months.

”•‟

It took a couple of weeks for Caitlin to get used to living in the house. But it was just that, just physically living in a new house, learning where everything was and bumping into corners.

It took virtually no time at all for her to get used to live with Cisco. It felt easy, too easy, but Caitlin quickly got used to falling asleep in his arms, to brushing their teeth side by side in the bathroom, to fighting with him for the first cup of coffee. It was normal, to see his boxers next to her bras.

Aurora still woke up once or twice during the night, and they took turns in getting her back to sleep. When they had a night off, they cooked together, in pajamas, chatting away in the kitchen. Sometimes, they’d get someone to babysit Aurora and they’d go on a date, either to the movies or to some restaurant. They had some sort of sex every night they weren’t exhausted.

Sometimes, Caitlin’s mother visited. Other times, Cisco’s parents came over. Both of those relationships were complicated, but they were all trying, and things felt easier with Aurora laughing in the background.

Caitlin was happy, with Aurora in her arms and Cisco’s lips in close vicinity.

”•‟

Life went on.

They took turns in going to Star Labs, helped Barry and fought alongside him, stopped metahumans right and left.

It felt normal, and they were all grateful they didn’t have to fight another Zoom or another Savitar.

And then, the Legends landed on the Star Labs roof. Almost two years after the Dominators invasion, almost two years since anybody saw them, they came back and asked for help, from Team Flash, Team Arrow and Supergirl.

There was a former Time Master, wreaking havoc across time. He was too resourceful, too strong, too smart and too cunning for the Legends to stop him on their own. Not for their lack of trying.

Of course, Oliver and his team came running, Supergirl came flying, and Barry and his team were quick to get on the Waverider, ready to fight.

They left Aurora with Iris and Joe, and Caitlin tried to shut off her concern and emotions, putting on her Frost suit and throwing herself into the mission.

She still paused, when Leonard Snart casually made his way to the bridge of the ship.

‘Not dead’, he quipped easily. ‘It’s a long story.’

Caitlin shared a look with Felicity and Sara, that clearly confused Snart, but they didn’t say anything.

‘Which we’ll gladly tell you later’, Sara said rather pointedly. ‘Gideon, please bring Team Arrow, Team Flash and Supergirl up to speed.’

Caitlin wasn’t the only one who startled when the faceless voice said a polite ‘Certainly, Captain.’

She shook herself out of it and focused on the mission.

”•‟

It was a long mission, they were fighting, constantly, for days.

Caitlin bled in Chicago in 1918. Star City, 2035. New York, 1867. Paris, 2012.

It was pretty damn horrible, and Gideon worked overtime in fixing up broken bones and cuts and concussions.

But together, they managed to defeat the time master.

They all got back to Star Labs and suddenly, there were a lot of bottles of alcohol. Caitlin wanted nothing more than to run home and hug Aurora. But she wanted to stay here too, because these were her friends and in the past days, they discussed nothing except for the mission.

She shared a look with Cisco. They didn’t need words, but he understood her thoughts anyway.

He clapped, grabbing everyone’s attention.

‘All right, Team Superheroes. Grab the booze, we’re moving to the house!’

‘Who’s house?’, Jax asked.

‘Ours’, Caitlin smiled at him.

There was a pause.

‘You guys have a house.’, Sara said slowly. It wasn’t a question, but it was.

‘There’s no way we’ll all fit into your living room’, Barry stopped any answer they had.

Cisco sighed, but he also extended his credit card to Barry.

‘The back yard.’, Cisco said. ‘But we need chairs.’

Barry whined, but he also grabbed the credit card and Wally, flashing away.

Cisco grinned at Caitlin and opened up a breach in the middle of the Cortex. She didn’t need to see it to know it lead to their back yard. So Caitlin was the first one to step through it.

”•‟

With the chairs the Flashes brought, they managed. The booze was quickly making the rounds, they ordered pizza from 10 different places and Caitlin spent a long time in the kitchen with Ray and Kara, making coffee.

Aurora was sleeping and they didn’t want to wake her up, but after the coffee was made, Joe told Caitlin that she’d been sleeping for two and a half hours.

So Caitlin woke Aurora up, delighted in the way she was quick to smile at her, and wrap her little hands around Caitlin’s neck.

But soon enough, Aurora wanted her father. So when Caitlin made her way back to the yard, with Aurora on her hip, the girl was constantly saying ‘Da Da Da Da’, which was her version of Dad.

She was just starting to figure out speaking, but only barely. They managed to teach her to say her name and she picked up a few other words, but they were Ma and Da said as many times needed.

All the Legends stopped whatever they were doing, staring at Caitlin and Aurora. Team Arrow was less surprised, but still staring. Kara cooed, out loud.

Aurora finally saw Cisco, and her voice kicked up a notch.

He was quick to hurry and take Aurora in his arms, saying ‘Daddy’s here’ and kissing her all over while she giggled. Cisco gave Caitlin a kiss too, before turning back to the gang.

‘Did you two have a kid?’, Jax asked, obviously incredulous.

‘Kinda’, Caitlin was trying not to laugh.

‘How old is she?’, Professor Stein asked, confusion being replaced with a small smile.

‘She’s turning 2 in three months’, Cisco said proudly.

‘No, wait’, Sara said a little strongly. ‘That means you should’ve been pregnant during the invasion. You weren’t!’

‘Well…’, Caitlin started.

‘She’s not physically ours’, Cisco took over. ‘She’s our doppelganger’s from Earth 57, but they died, so. She’s ours.’

‘What’s a douplegangbang?’, Mick asked, earning a few eye rolls.

‘Copy’, Snart provided. ‘Clone. Impostor. Ish.’

‘Ah!’, Mick’s eyes grew wide. ‘Got it. Cool!’

‘Baaaaaah’, Aurora agreed, and that had everyone moving and scrambling to get to the baby first.

”•‟

Aurora made the rounds, everyone more than willing to take turns playing with her. She was enjoying it, clearly, laughing and giggling and babbling.

Caitlin kept an eye out for her, of course she did, but Aurora was in good hands.

At one point, Felicity walked around with her for a while. She hadn’t gotten walking down to perfection, but as long as someone was holding her hand, she spent more time up than down.

Felicity let Aurora lead her, and the baby took her straight to Snart’s side. He was leaning against a table, as Mick was reclining in a chair next to it.

Aurora let go of Felicity’s hand, and planted it on Snart’s leg, holding onto his jeans to keep herself upright. Her other hand went higher on his leg.

‘Up!’, Aurora said sweetly. ‘Up up up!’

Snart just blinked down at her for a while.

‘Well’, he finally said, ‘what do we say when we want something?’

Aurora frowned for a while, but then her eyes lit up.

‘Please!’.

It sounded more like ‘pwease’, but it made a small smile appear on Snart’s face.

‘Please, up!’, Aurora went on, tightening her hold on his clothes.

‘Well if you asked so nicely’, Snart rolled his eyes, but he did pick her up, expertly holding her on his hip.

‘You know, your parents are supposed to be geniuses’, he somewhat sweetly told her. ‘But they never told us your name.’

Aurora was watching him curiously.

‘What’s your name?’, Snart smiled at her.

‘Aurora!’, she said loudly.

Snart chuckled, bouncing her gently.

‘Well aren’t you a proper princess?’

Mick groaned at that, getting up from his chair. He glared at Aurora a little.

‘You’re cute’, he grunted. ‘And breakable.’

He straightened up and started walking away. ‘Babies freak me out.’

Snart rolled his eyes at that, and Felicity laughed out loud, before turning to him.

‘You’re surprisingly good at this’.

He regarded her coldly. ‘I raised a little sister.’

‘Oh, right’, Felicity put a hand on her forehead. ‘I forgot about that.’

Snart just hummed at that, turning his attention back to Aurora.

‘Well you’re in good hands’, Felicity kissed the top of Aurora’s head before turning around and leaving as well.

Snart frowned at her, but then Aurora started babbling. Caitlin took pity on him and made her way to his side.

‘I can take her, if you want.’

He shook his head, smiling when Aurora pushed her head to his chest.

‘It’s fine, Doc’, Snart said somewhat gently, turning to look around the yard. His eyes stopped on something, and they narrowed slightly.

‘How about’, he turned back to Aurora. ‘We go see what Aunt Sara and Uncle Oliver are talking about?’

The baby screeched, so he threw Caitlin a look and made his way to the other side of the yard, where Sara and Oliver were having a hushed conversation.

Caitlin followed them with her eyes, so she didn’t miss the way Sara’s hands immediately went to Snart as soon as he was sitting down next to her. She wrapped a hand around his shoulder and Sara was gently scratching the back of Snart’s neck, as they were both talking with Aurora. They looked incredibly comfortable with one another, a fond spark in their eyes.

Oliver didn’t miss it either, considering he had a very particular look on his face, mostly concerned but also confused. But then Felicity was there, easily sitting in Oliver’s lap, and he seemed to mellow down.

Caitlin felt hands wrap around her waist and a warm body plastering to her back. She smiled even before Cisco kissed her neck.

‘We should get married’, he whispered.

Caitlin snorted. ‘What? Now?’

He shrugged. ‘I wouldn’t mind.’

She huffed, annoyed, elbowing him in the stomach. Cisco let go of her, and Caitlin turned around to face him.

‘No’, she told him strongly. ‘No, we’re not doing that. I got married in a rush once before, and I’m not doing it again. If we’re getting married, we’re doing it properly. With a scheduled time at City Hall, and a reception, and all of our friends and family.’

During her rant, Cisco’s smile kept growing and growing, turning into a full on grin.

‘Is that a yes?’

Caitlin rolled her eyes, but she also poured all the love she felt for Cisco into the kiss she drew him into.

”•‟

An hour later, Aurora was asleep in Ray’s lap, Kara and Barry were taking pictures of it, Oliver was telling the story of how he came to knew his son and Cisco though he was being stealthy as he was looking up engagement rings on his phone.

Snart came to Caitlin’s side.

‘So, Doc’, he smirked. ‘Nice life you’ve got here.’

She couldn’t help but giggle. ‘Jealous?’

He rolled his eyes, of course he did. But he also whispered a barely heard ‘Just a little.’

Then, he threw her a look. ‘I mean, you live with Cisco. That can’t be pleasant.’

Caitlin shoved at his shoulder. He didn’t budge, raising a fairly judgmental eyebrow. She relented, tilting her head.

‘You know what, Snart? Despite everything… Despite metahumans and aliens and time traveling heroes… Yes, yes I do have a nice life here. ‘

She smiled at her back yard, filled with various superheroes, with metahumans and people just as strong.

‘I think we all have a pretty darn good life.’

Of course, that was the moment Mick pushed Jax right over a table, breaking it. That sound of course woke Aurora up and she instantly started crying. Ray panicked and all but threw her at Cisco, who dropped his phone in a bush of roses in order to catch their daughter.

Caitlin sighed, turning to look at Snart, who was barely containing his laughter.

‘Well’, she said slowly. ‘Almost. Almost pretty darn good.’


End file.
